


Revenge of White Rabbit

by TiBun, UnknownPaws



Series: White Rabbit [1]
Category: Tiger & Bunny
Genre: Blood and Injury, Bottom Kotetsu, Choose Your Own Ending, Emotional, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Experimentation, Extreme Situations, F/M, Feels, Heavy Angst, Horror, Human Experimentation, Humiliation, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Non-Consensual Body Modification, Other, Public Blow Jobs, Public Humiliation, Public Nudity, Public Sex, Religious Interpretations, Science Experiments, Slight crossover in one of the endings, Suicide, Surgery, Suspense, Top Barnaby, Triggers, Two Endings, Unethical Experimentation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-19
Updated: 2015-12-16
Packaged: 2018-04-21 14:21:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 14
Words: 45,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4832390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TiBun/pseuds/TiBun, https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnknownPaws/pseuds/UnknownPaws
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They say that bad things happen in threes, but they never specify just how Nightmarish "bad things" can get.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: We do not own any recognizable characters. We only explore the possibilities.  
> Malvolio belongs to UnknownPaws.
> 
> So, this was going to be only three chapters long and posted throughout the month of October, however, we soon discovered our plot grew too big for that and it's proving to be a longer one, so we are starting it post it now, and it'll probably end after Halloween is over. LOL
> 
> Also, we will have two endings as we could not choose between two of our many ideas we discussed for the end.
> 
> We are still writing this so tags may be added or removed as we write and unplanned things happen or planed things do not happen that we feel needs to be included in the warnings for trigger and comfort purposes.

It started out small. Little glitches in the system, tiny fragments of exhaustion wavering his concentration here and there like bothersome flies to his brain. A sputter or two, the engine of his energy coughing out and in need of repair.

He was told to rest. True, he had been working too hard. With Kotetsu, his ever lasting partner, standing at only one minute of his former glorified Hundred Power, Barnaby was forced to prop both himself and his partner up at a vigorous rate. He had no choice - were he to abandon his post and leave his comrade to flounder, Kotetsu would be ripped from his crime-fighting side faster than he could say _'fired'_.

And truthfully, with all the man had gone through, he didn't need the pain of rejection anymore.

But that didn't mean that Barnaby didn't tire and worry more for the city's sake than Kotetsu's own. It was selfish, cruel, but realistic and to be quite honest Barnaby was not certain if he could continue brushing his concern and gnawing doubt aside any longer.

So when he was offered a short vacation, he took it. To which Kotetsu, and not to his surprise, supported the decision wholeheartedly, appreciative of all the effort his partner had put forth.

And again, the guilt of feeling doubt mingled with the slight irritation of feeling overused.

But instead of recover, he hit rock bottom. When he returned, he almost died. His powers, still sputtering and unstable, exhausted far before his ten muinet mark. Sending the blond hero crash down thirty stories from the gap between two high rises.

He awoke two weeks later in hospital and was gifted the horrible reality like partner like partner. The famed Hundred Power, strong and promising, lied to the user through borrowed time or limited usage. And it seemed, to the unfortunate blond, that his extra effort in pulling his partner up with him, he'd almost run his fuel dry. His tank was running low, and nothing could fix that.

No diesel, no oil, no fire or determination.

He was a broken machine.

And now, sitting alone in the bed with the clipboard clamped tightly between shaking hands, he didn't know how to feel at all.

Towards himself, his partner, anything at all.

All he could feel was... rage.

A knock sounded at the door and Kotetu poked his head in with one of his usual goofy grins before he slipped into the room, closing the door behind him. In his hand, he held a vase of calla lilies, and he walked over to set it on the table next to Barnaby's bed.

"Kaede said you might like these." Kotetsu said, gesturing at the flowers as he pulled up a chair and sat down next to the bed, his honey-brown gaze taking in the sight of his partner's injuries, and the smile fading from his face.

"What happened?" the man took on one of his rare serious tones, worry evident in his voice, "I thought you activated your powers, but then you fell—I tried to catch you but I wasn't fast enough and.." he squeezed his eyes shut and took a shaky breath, "I was so worried about you, Bunny…"

Barnaby could not find words to answer his partner, his eyes closing shut the moment Kotetsu started to speak. His mind was silent and numb, but his heart raged with a wildfire of pain and anger. Who to blame, who to point fingers at?

But the only one at fault was himself.

There were no Mavericks behind masks, no puppets on strings, no robots disguised as friends to break him apart...

Only shame, wounded pride, and guilt.

And so, all Barnaby could do was look away and hold out the clipboard.

"Bunny." Kotetsu repeated, reaching out and lowering the clipboard, "Were you distracted? Are you hiding something? Please talk to me."

Barnaby shook his head, inhaling deeply before starting. "My powers..."

Kotetsu frowned, "Your powers…" It took him a moment before  Barnaby's meaning finally seemed to click in his mind, and his eyes widened, "Do you mean your powers are doing the same thing mine did?!" he gasped loudly. It did make sense, in a way. They had the same powers and Kotetsu wasn't even the first with Hundred Power to see his powers declining. Why would he be the last? But at the same time, Barnaby was still in his prime.

Barnaby clenched his fists, knuckles turning as white as his face, the realization hitting him over the head once again.

No more powers.

No more Hero.

He was finished.

"Barnaby…" Kotetsu moved to sit on the edge off the hospital bed, and he grabbed the blond's shoulders, though it was a gentle grip. Everything Kotetsu did was gentle, "Look at me, Barnaby."

His tan hand slid up against the lily-white skin of the younger hero's neck and into his long curly hair, "Don't make the same mistake I did when I found out about my powers. Don't hold it in to yourself. I'm here. You know I'm here, and you know I know exactly what it's like…"

Barnaby bit back a snappish response, forcing himself to swallow down his anger and denial, slowly accepting his situation with a cold sorrow. Kotetsu was right, and Barnaby knew he would find no other who could share his pain as much as his partner. And the hand running through his hair did feel nice...

Kotetsu leaned in, pressing his lips to Barnaby's in a brief, comforting kiss, "You aren't alone. You have been here for me all these years…don't forget I'm also here for you."

He slid his hand down along Barnaby's arm to his hand, lifting it to kiss the simple golden band that sat upon his finger, "Marriage goes two ways."

Barnaby finally felt himself relax, all of his energy and sorrow released in a single, long winded sigh as he fell into his husband's arms.

"We'll get through this," Kotetsu promised, "We'll learn how to deal with it, just as we did when mine declined. And we had only been partners then. Now we are so much more than that."

The older hero pressed another kiss to his husband; this time atop his golden locks. "I fall more in love with you every day—this won't change that."

Barnaby leaned into the kiss, his worries and pain washing away temporarily in the warmth his husband offered. Locking their hands together, fingers intertwining, he pressed himself up against Kotetsu, relishing the comfort and security.

Kotetsu pressed a few more kisses onto Barnaby's soft skin before he spoke again, "But first, we need you to heal up and get out of this bed so we can go home."

Barnaby nodded in agreement, speaking at last with soft words.

"Yes... thank you, Kotetsu..."

"Do you need or want anything?" Kotetsu asked, pulling back to look at him, "A drink, snack…extra pillow?"

"Just you" was the answer, Barnaby grabbing Kotetsu's by the tie and yanking him down for one more kiss, a smirk upon his devilish lips.

Kotetsu's cheeks flushed, but he allowed it, "Don't strain yourself." He gasped when he was able. He wrapped his arms around Barnaby, careful not to upset his injuries as he settled in next to him on the bed.

"Aw, really, dad?" a young woman's voice complained from the now open door. Kotetsu's daughter stood with her hands on her hips. "You need to stop letting me walk in on you and Barnaby like this! I don't want to see my dad and stepdad do things like that!"

Kotetsu blushed deeper, "He wanted it."

"So lock the door—or hang your tie on the handle or something!" She walked in and smiled, "I just wanted to see you before I left for school again."

Barnaby offered her a genuine smile, reaching out to take her hand. "For the record, your father started it."

"I—I did not!" Kotetsu gasped.

Kaede rolled her eyes, "You both start it and you know it." She shook her head, thinking back to their wedding reception when they disappeared after dinner and was late to their own first dance as a married couple—Kotetsu's suit was even a bit disheveled and Barnaby had somehow lost his tie when they returned.

"I want you two to be careful while I'm gone. I think Dad is rubbing off on you, Barnaby." She teased.

Barnaby mock gasped in horror. "I should hope not! I'm only 31, too soon to be an Old Man!"

"Watch it, this old man you are talking about shares your wedding bed." Kotetsu smirked, tickling his husband's sides.

Barnaby wriggled away, cheekily poking his husband in the side. "Because your bed was too small. I kept falling off every single night."

He pecked Kotetsu's cheek. "I am jesting you, Old Man. Be patient, and I'll be home to you sooner than you think."

"Please don't start making out again." Kaede said before Kotetsu had a chance at replying in any way.

Barnaby chuckled. "We won't. Now, have you been finishing your homework? I know you've been having a bit of a struggle with Writing again, and I don't trust your father to help in that area."

"I'm plenty fine at helping with that kind of thing!" Kotetsu insisted. Kaede had moved in with her father and his husband so that she could attend a larger school in the city and work on gaining a better handle on her NEXT powers. Kotetsu was pleased with it as he got to see her more often, but she was also about to leave on a school trip that would be a week long.

She shifted, "Maybe you can help me when I get back, Barnaby?"

"Of course" Barnaby nodded. "I suspect I won't be on the job for a while, so I'll have all the time to assist you when you get back."

"Thank you, Barnaby!" Kaede hugged him and hurried to the door, "But I need to go before I am late and am left behind! See you next week!"

"Hey—where's my hug goodbye?" Kotetsu pouted as she disappeared.

Silence greeted them and Barnaby chuckled, gently taking his husband's hand and giving it a squeeze. "She'll be back soon, kitten. It's only for a week."

"I know…but she always gives you the hugs. I'm jealous. She's my baby…" Kotetsu pouted, resting his chin on Barnaby's shoulder and pushing his lips outwards.

Barnaby smirked, scratching under his husband's chin akin to how one would a pet cat. "She knows her favorites." he teased, then sobered up. "She loves you more than anything in the world. You know she does."

"I know…still would like more hugs…" Kotetsu sighed and shifted his gaze sideways to look at his husband, "But I believe she did interrupt something you said would make you feel better." He grinned.

"Only a little." Barnaby smirked, pulling his husband back down into a kiss. "Well, my Tiger? Shall we proceed?"

"Rrrrawr~" Kotetsu grinned, slipping his hands beneath Barnaby's hospital gown.

* * *

To be continued...


	2. Chapter 2

Barnaby had been released the morning after Kaede had left on her week-long trip, and though he had clearance to return to his normal routine, he had not received clearance to return to hero work—at least when it came to catching criminals. They wanted him to take a reprieve from that until they gave him the okay to go. Barnaby continued to work from his desk and make public appearances, however. And with Kotetsu's strong support, he made the announcement to all those involved with Hero TV that his powers were declining. It had been a bit of a shock to everyone, but they were quick to support their friend.

Come the middle of the week, the two husbands donned suits and attended a mandatory fundraiser event for the station. All of the heroes, including second league were in attendance.

Kotetsu sighed, walking over to the bar to get himself a drink. He wasn't overly fond with such events, and he had to behave himself around Barnaby. While their friends and family knew of their wedding, the public did not. It had been kept secret for the image of the program. However, that didn't stop the fans and media from spotting the gold band upon Barnaby's finger, and though they have tried to discover who the 'mystery wife' was, they had never suspected Wild Tiger who had been married before and was known to always wear his ring. Never mind the fact that his finger now supported two rings overlapping each other.

Picking up the glass of champagne he was handed, he nodded to the bartender and turned to watch the large room full of wealth and big names mingle amongst themselves.

"Oh god, there he is... what a loser." a female voice grumbled from close by.

Kotetsu didn't pay much attention to the woman. He had no interest in such gossip. With a sigh, he sipped his drink, his eyes scanning the room in hopes to spot his husband—if only to make sure he was doing alright. He was out of the hospital, but Kotetsu still worried. Until their continued words caught his full attention.

"Wild Tiger? They had the nerve to bring him in after what he's done to Barnaby!"

"Done is an overstatement, he's practically been latched onto him like a parasite."

"More like a rock. Sinking the poor boy down."

The women chattered aimlessly, inconsiderate and unaware of certain ears lying close by.

Across the room, Barnaby was faring no better than his husband as similar questions floated from the mouths of CEOs and political figures. Reporters hovered, ready to scoop up any word he let slip. He was on his toes, had to be, and he could slowly feel the stress building on.

It was getting harder to suppress the returning anger and coldness seeping into his heart.

Kotetsu gripped his glass tighter and he turned to the women, approaching them. He knew he should just let it go, but he wanted to know just why they thought he hurt Barnaby as they seemed to imply.

"Good evening, Ladies," He kept his tone pleasant, keeping up appearances as was expected of him.

Needless to say, they were not pleased to see the veteran hero in the slightest. Two scowled, three looked away, and only one was civil enough to address the man.

"Good evening, Mr. Wild" she stated cooling, looking aloof.

Choosing to pretend he didn't notice the women's cold reactions, he smiled, "Ah, please, Wild Tiger is fine!"  He laughed, "I hope you ladies are enjoying the evening."

"We are." came the clipped answer, before the upper class women decided to close in on the poor tiger. "So, Mr. Wild... How is your partner faring with the loss of his powers?"

"Ah…so word leaked about that, hu?" Kotetsu sighed and glanced over at Barnaby—who looked to be doing okay. "It's a rough situation, but he's not alone."

"Of course not. He has the support of the city after all."

"He has more than that. He has the support of all of us Heroes, and his family."

"His family?" the woman raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, his family.  He is married, as the reporters keep saying, putting out theories on who his wife is." Kotetsu reminded the woman.

"Poppycock. It's all for publicity. You don't actually believe that load of tosh, do you?" she clicked her tongue, eyeing the man disapprovingly.

"I heard someone say he's married to Wild Tiger." another woman chimed in, his voice laced with disgust. "They were so giddy about it - how disrespectful to Barnaby! His wife-"

"-You actually don't believe that, do you?-"

"-must be riddled with shame!"

"I have met…her." Kotetsu insisted with slightly pinkened cheeks, "His wife is much more understanding than you'd think about such rumors about Barnaby and I. We are partners, after all. We work together closely and so there are bound to be some rumors about us."

The woman snorted in disbelief.

"You don't believe me?" he asked, eyebrows raised through his mask hid it.

"I don't believe either of the two things you claim." she sniffed.

"What two things?" Kotetsu frowned. "That he's married and I know who he's married to? I was at the wedding, Ma'am."

"That you claim to 'work' with him." the lady snipped, gesturing to the veteran with her champagne glass. 'When it is he who does all the work."

"That isn't true at all." Kotetsu shook his head.

"Really?" she raised an eyebrow at him. "When was the last time you made an arrest that didn't require Barnaby bailing you out? When last did you do anything on your own without his help? No... When have you ever done something useful for him?"

She shook her head.

"Ever since your powers have failed you, you've become a rock. Dragging Barnaby down. Everyone can see it. The poor boy is exhausted, absolutely winded. Look at how thin he is, how the bags sink under his eyes."

She leaned in, glaring at him.

"You aren't healthy for him... so why do you insist on being his burden still?"

Kotetsu was taken aback. Was that how people saw them? Sure, Barnaby would do more amazing things, but his powers, up until now, had lasted four minutes longer than Kotetsu's. He had to be careful of activating and he had to time it perfect so that he and Barnaby could do their best together as a team.

They were a team. They made their arrests together. They assisted each other on everything, so of course it had been a while since he'd last captured a criminal on his own.

"Barnaby's still recovering from his accident." Kotetsu huffed. It was getting harder to keep up his friendly smile and tone.

"That you inevitably did cause." she snapped.

"She has a point." a man called out from over by the bar. "Barnaby has been picking your load up more than necessary. You've been getting soft, Tiger."

"It's a shame, really... so young, he should have had more time." another man said a little ways off.

Kotetsu tilted his head, his hair casting a shadow over his eyes, "I wasn't even there when he fell. Trust me, if I had been there, I would have been there to catch him." He growled.

"See?" she turned back to her friends. "You can't even be there when he needs you the most."

"If you had been watching, you'd know we split up to head off the targets! There was nothing more I could do! We are a team, but that doesn't mean we are attached at the hip!"

"Could've fooled me." the man at the bar stated, more gossips slowly reaching the veteran's ears. All negative, all diminishing. Until one final point finally hit it home.

"King of Heroes...what a joke. I was told by my father that they only gave him the title out of pity. Only because his wife, out of embarrassment, begged them to. Poor woman, being married to _that_."

Kotetsu felt as if a train had just hit his heart.

Tomoe…she had believed in him more than anyone. She had been his inspiration, his reason of becoming a hero. She had supported him in some of his darkest hours, even as she lay dying, she wanted him to be a hero. Titles didn't matter to him. He only wanted to be the hero she knew he was…

He clenched his fists, and slammed his drink down on the bar's surface with such force that the crystal shattered and the expensive champagne splashed all over the bar and floor.

"Don't." he hissed dangerously, "Don't you dare pretend you knew my wife. Don't you dare bring her down to your level! None of you know anything about her! Say what you want about me, but don't you dare say a single word against Tomoe!" His voice rose with each word until he was shouting. With that said, he turned, marching out of the hall to get some fresh air and to try to calm down.

Tears stung at his eyes as he pushed his way through the crowd, ignoring Blue Rose as she called out to him.

They were wrong! Every word was wrong!

He burst out the doors and walked out of the building into the darkening evening. Half way down the block he took a deep breath and sat on a bench with a sigh, hanging his head. He should have left it alone. He should have let them talk amongst themselves—he should have not lost his cool and yelled… he cringed: that had been a mistake.

But what if it were true? Well, obviously not all of it, but what if he was the reason Barnaby seemed to be suffering a decline in his powers while he was still so young? It was true that Barnaby was always there to catch him when he fell if he didn't pay enough attention to how long he had left after activating his powers, but Kotetsu always did his best on his half of their team-up. Protecting the people was his priority—not gaining points. It had always been that way for him…but was his husband and partner suffering for it?

He buried his face in his hands and shuttered a sigh. "Bunny…"

* * *

To be continued…


	3. Chapter 3

Kotetsu removed his mask long enough to dry his eyes before putting it back on and pushing himself to his feet. He needed to go back, he knew that. It was part of his job, and he didn't want to leave his husband alone in that particular crowd for too long—what if they started talking to him the same way they had to Wild Tiger? No, Barnaby didn't need that added stress.

He sighed and turned to head back, spotting a head of blond curls not too far ahead. "Bunny…" Maybe they had driven the blond to needing time alone, as well. Though Barnaby was in a black sit, and Kotetsu could have sworn he'd worn his white one. But maybe he was just remembering wrong. Both colors looked equally good on his attractive young husband.

He jogged up behind his husband, slipping his arms around him and muttering against his neck, "I know we are in public, but I could really use this hug right now, Bunny."

His husband tilted his head, right as the moon crawled out behind the clouds and shone bright against blond-

No, snow white hair and skin. The yellowing light from lamp posts no longer coloring his features.

"A hug?" Barnaby murmured, his hands reaching up to gently touch the tan ones resting on his shoulders.

"Mmhm, I sorta lost myself inside…the kind of things some people were saying." He sighed, "I really dislike events like these. Think we could skip out and go home early? I'm sure the producers won't mind, seeing as you are still recovering from that fall you took…" As he spoke, guilt started taking root in his heart. He should have been closer so he could have caught him in time…

The Hero sighed again and moved around to Barnaby's front, opening his eyes, "We cou—what?" Kotetsu yanked his hands back, away from his husband—but it wasn't his husband. He was far too pale, his hair just as white as the moon and eyes blood red and lacking his glasses, "When did you—are you dressed up as a vampire for something? Did I miss a memo about this event?"

"Memo?" the Barnaby-lookalike blinked, tilted his head again. "I have never heard of this 'memo' you speak of."

His eyes casted down to Kotetsu's hand, where the two rings lay on his finger.

"It's just the light of the moon" he finally said after a moment, offering the man a close-eyed smile. "You're anger is justified."

"Maybe…" Kotetsu chuckled and rubbed the back of his head, "I just never have seen the moonlight make you look so pale. Where are your glasses?"

"I dropped them over the bridge" came the slightly self-annoyed response. "Stupid things slipped off my bloody face."

"What?! Why didn't you call me?" Kotetsu sighed, "Come on, I'll help you get your spares from your desk. You'll get a headache straining your eyes too long to try and see things all night." He grabbed Barnaby's hand and started pulling him towards the Apollon building—but then paused, "Why were you over by the bridge? That's a bit of a long walk from here…"

"Looking for you." his oddly pale husband answered, throwing the man an irked glance. "You just ran off without warning. I had no idea where you were."

"Ah—sorry…" Kotetsu hung his head, "This one woman just said something about Tomoe that I just—I couldn't handle it. I needed time to calm down, but I couldn't just go grab you because we are keeping our marriage a secret, and—sorry."

"I understand" Barnaby nodded. "I will have someone deal with her later."

"Uh—right…" Kotetsu frowned, leaning in closer to his husband, "Are you feeling okay?" he reached up to press his hand to Barnaby's forehead.

The skin was soft, almost like a newborn baby's, warm and smooth. Barnaby smiled at him, his red eyes lidded and cheeks warm.

"I feel wonderful."

"Something seems…off…" Kotetsu muttered, pulling back and studying his husband's face and posture.

Barnaby looked confused, almost a little hurt.

"What do you mean?"

Kotetsu shrugged, "Just a feeling I have…you seem warm, are you sure you are alright?"

"It's my normal body temperature?" Barnaby raised an eyebrow, then put on a somber face. "You don't... trust me?"

"I'm your husband, Barnaby, I have the right to worry. Come on, lets get your glasses and then we'll discuss if we go back to the fundraiser or if we go home and get you in bed resting."

In the back of his mind, Kotetsu began to doubt that this was his husband. There were too many oddities, and the bright lights of the inside of the building would help confirm or deny his suspicions.

As if to sense his hesitation and doubt, Barnaby pulled back, tugging his husband close to him.

"Wait."

"Hu?" Kotetsu looked back at Barnaby with a frown, "We can go back to the party if you want but I want you to have your glasses. You are pretty blind without them."

"Not that... I have a spare pair of glasses at home, remember? In the drawer, next to the nightstand."

"Yeah, but these are closer…"

Maybe it was all in his head. Maybe those people's words earlier had gotten to him more than he thought they had and he began doubting—everything?

Barnaby tugged on his hand, frowning a little.

"I want to go home" he said, voice flat and sharp.

Kotetsu sighed and gave a small nod, "Alright. Let's go home."

Barnaby smiled, this time a little more sinister.

"Perfect."

He then flashed the familiar, dark tattoo on his hand.

With a gasp, Kotetsu pushed himself away from the fake Barnaby.

"Oroboros." He growled.

And then something hard hit the back of Kotetsu's head; the fake Barnaby's smirk growing more twisted as he watched Kotetsu fall into darkness at his feet.

* * *

To be continued…


	4. Chapter 4

Kotetsu's head throbbed as he groaned and tried to move. His body uncomfortable and stiff, but stuck in it's awkward position. Hands behind his back and legs together. His mouth also ached, his tongue trapped under something unpleasant-tasting.

Opening his eyes, he found himself in an unfamiliar room with grey walls and floor. He was bound and gagged, and he started wiggling, trying to loosen the bindings, only to grunt in pain when he fell off the table he had been on and onto the cement floor.

"Well, now. That's was utterly pathetic."

A cool, accented voice echoed out around the room, speakers sitting upon the wall vibrating with each careful word spoken.

"Though I really shouldn't have expected much. Humans are so cumbersome, it really is quite an embarrassment to call you brethren."

Kotetsu looked around the empty room, his words muffled into unintelligent sounds by the gag.

"I believe it's safe to let you loose now." the voice continued, a click and a hissing sounding as Kotetsu's bounds broke free. "The first operation was a success. I'd like to thank you for your services - didn't realize you were that small in size."

Kotetsu groaned again and reached up to yank the gag free. "What…are you talking about?" he moaned, trying to get up and falling back down, disoriented and seeing double.

"Does the word 'surgery' mean anything to your tiny human brain?" the voice commented dryly.

"Surgery?—ohh god, my head." Kotetsu squeezed his eyes shut and held his head, waiting for the world around him to stop spinning.

"Cut you open; put stuff in. Though humans are already compact... it was difficult to find room." the voice drawled, as if this were a normal everyday conversation to have with someone at the dinner table.

Kotetsu froze, "What—did you put in me? He gasped, feeling along his body for any stitches. He found his mask and call band were gone, but no areas that indicated he'd been cut open.

"Take a guess."

"How could I?! This isn't normal! People don't just put things inside people like that! Tell me what you did to me!" Kotetsu yelled, clenching his fists.

"...No." the voice said coolly, another one snorting with laughter in the background.

"Tell me!" The hero hissed, activating his Hundred Power and rushing at the door, intent to knock it off its hinges. It looked wood, but it didn't budge when he made contact, and he was reflected off, back onto the floor.

"Are humans really this impulsive, or are you just plain stupid?" the voice sounded annoyed. "It's made of titanium, you daft git."

"Tch," Kotetsu looked away and down at the floor.

And like that, his power fizzled out, leaving him truly helpless in his situation.

"You know" the voice chimed. "I believe this is becoming too hostile."

A hiss sounded, the titanium door unlocking and sliding open to reveal climbing stairs.

"Why don't we take this upstairs in my residence?"

With his powers no longer activated, Kotetsu felt dizzy again, and he weighed his options. There was no other way out, so staying wasn't much an option… he sighed and pushed himself up, using the wall to help steady him as he mounted the steps.

The climb was long and steep, reaching up to over twenty floors before the stair case ended at a high rise platform and a door stood between Kotetsu and his captor.

Kotetsu paused. He only needed to bide his time until his powers recharged and he could try to run or fight again. With a tired sigh, he pushed open the door.

Light blinded his eyes; bright and warm before clearing up to reveal a rather elegant setting.

A room, decorated lavishly with European flair and various shades of reds broke the cold repetition of steel grey laboratory wall. Red and black stripes with roses implanted in vertical patterns along thin green vines scaling like ropes covered the walls in a symmetrical fashion. The floor was a dark cherry hardwood, polished and scratch free.

But the furniture was the more exquisite. Tables and chairs and sofas appearing out of an old French chateau sat scattered all around, some by a fireplace and others by a very expensive looking television set, a large bay window overlooking a large body of deep blue water, and in the corner to accompany a large array of book shelves.

Kotetsu slowly stepped in, weary of attacks that might happen as soon as he did. "I want to know what you put inside me." He repeated himself, eyes shifting in search of the fake Barnaby that he'd been tricked by. "You're an android, right? Another Oroboros robotic hero replacement?"

A soft chuckle answered him, the voice calling out from the opposite end of the room. 

"Android... If only it were that easy to define."

A light clicked on, and seated on the surface of a great ornate bed, sat the fake Barnaby. It was clear now in the light that he was much to pale to be the original.

Pure white skin and hair, as if all the color had been drained from his body. Eyes shimmered, drops of blood against a white sheet, and pale petal lips parted to beckon his prize to his side.

If only he were alone - it was then Kotetsu noticed the presence of another white skinned humanoid lying comfortably with its head on the man's lap.

A girl, just as pale and saturated as the Barnaby fake, lay asleep and unaware, the doppelganger's hand threading aimlessly though her hair like it were silk.

"So…they made a replacement for all of us." Kotetsu observed. The girl was undoubtedly Blue Rose's robotic replacement.

"So it seems." the Barnaby lookalike nodded, though his voice took on a bitter tone. "Perfect _copies_ of the originals."

"Obviously not perfect." Kotetsu growled, "Corrupted programming is no where near the same as the compassion, personalities, and morals us originals possess. Our memories and experiences that made us who we are—you lack. You aren't heroes."

"Do we now?" the fake narrowed his eyes. "Are you so quick to judge us, call us 'machines', without understanding our true nature of existence?"

He cast his eyes to the bedside table, where a small knife lay on a white cloth. Reaching over, careful not to disrupt the sleeping Rose, he took into his hand and held it to his right cheek.

"If I am so much a machine-"

The blade slowly crept across the white skin. Blood, red and staining, oozed slowly from the opening wound, dribbling down the doppelganger's face in a steady stream.

"-then why do I bleed?"

"Upgrades to your design. Obviously when they decided to activate the rest of you, they improved their life-like design. Bleed all you want, you will never be Barnaby."

The knife was suddenly at his face, the tip cutting into the skin of his nose. The next second, it was back at the fake Barnaby's side, the presumed android eyeing the wound as blood seeped out.

But his eyes held humor and he was _smiling_. Smiling and baring white teeth and looking downright amused at the Japanese man.

"So you still hold onto the foolish notion of denial, though I have shown you half of what I am. You are right, and wrong. But I will tell you this-"

He smirked, holding his hands up, knife fiddled with between fingers, the blade carelessly nicking them and flicking blood.

"- I am no android, my dear Tiger."

"You're also no human. You will only ever be the artificial creation of madmen." It was tempting to make a grab for the knife, but his powers were not yet recharged and he needed to time things right to get out. The artificial Barnaby was fast and had strength. He needed his powers to be a match and hold a chance of actually overpowering him if it came to it. But he'd also need luck. His powers only lasted one short minute.

That seemed to hit a nerve.

With a flick of the wrist, he chucked the knife again.

Kotetsu gasped and clumsily danced out of the way, losing balance and falling over—but avoiding the attack.

In that lose of focus, Kotetsu lost whatever chance he had at escaping the clutches of the android. A hand slammed into his throat, fingers digging into the skin with cold, steely nails.

"Ahk--!" Kotetsu choked, his eyes watering as he reached up to try and pry the hand from his throat.

The white rabbit grinned, tightening his grip until tears overflowed and spilled down Kotetsu's face.

"It's strange, isn't it?"

He caressed the side of Kotetsu's face, the blood of his fingers smearing with the salty waters.

"You claim to be valiant, pure. And yet here you are..."

He slacked his hold on the veteran, pulling away to allow recovery.

"Bringing others down through your own poorly assigned judgment."

"Nobody's perfect." Kotetsu coughed, trying to catch his breath now that air flooded his lungs once more. Once he was able to breath somewhat normally again, he looked up, narrowing his eyes.

"But let's look at the facts. You were created by Oroboros; a terrorist group. You are—at the very least—living weapons. You may not like to think of the fact that you are a robot, but you still bring harm to people. We have seen it before. We have fought two of you already—including the one that had been meant to replace myself after I was framed for murder by those who created you."

"Oh-" The android smiled, looking up as a shadow was cast over Kotetsu, a tall imposing figure letting out a low growl. 

"You mean H0-1 here?"

Kotetsu's eyes widened as he turned around to come face-to-face with himself. "But—"

"Hm?" his husband's twin smiled, tilting his head to the side (a trait that was appearing to be unique to him and him alone) and faking innocent.

"How—did he get bigger?" Kotetsu pushed himself to his unsteady feet and found his twin actually was taller than him, broader, too.

"Well I needed room to fit his organ tank, not to mention make room for the heart and brain... What was left of it."

"You do know that people aren't supposed to come back from the dead—right?"

"Humans no... We are a different story." the white rabbit shook his head. "We are not humans."

He glanced over at the former killer robot, H0-1, standing over Kotetsu with a blank face.

"But neither are we robots... Not originally. Not even him."

"Then what would you call yourselves?" Kotetsu asked, his head finally starting to clear of the effects of what he assumed were drugs they had used to keep him unconscious.

Glancing over at H0-1, the white rabbit rose to his feet. Silently stalking to the Black Tiger, like a pale ghost, he reached out to the android's chest.

No approval granted, no wait or moral consideration. He dug his nails into the robot's tan skin and with a cruel tug ripped it off the chest. Exposing a metal shell. The latter of which was soon pried loose and discarded like armor.

And there, sitting amongst the wires and metal skeleton, was a tank filled with human organs, connected to a smaller one containing a bloody, pulsating heart.

Kotetsu's eyes widened; his stomach turning. Just—what was Oroboros doing? Why were there organs? _Whose_ organs were they?

"His" the white rabbit shrugged, guessing Kotetsu's thoughts. "Whose else would they be?"

Placing the chest back on, he shooed the biorobot away.

"Go clean yourself up, put your skin back on. I believe Mr. Tiger and I may be reaching even grounds."

He turned back to Kotetsu, red eyes cold. "You think we are machines - things with no thought, no right, no life. But I will say it again-"

He made his way back to his prisoner, crouching down to eye level. Emotions void, he lifted his hand to his right cheek and digs his fingers into the flesh, breaking the skin. And pulled, tugged, peeling it away like wet paper, until the mask came off and Kotetsu was shown the truth in a system of metal and wire interwoven with organic flesh. A monster of Frankenstein idealism. A creature neither human or machine, but both at once, an unnatural conception of science.

"-We are not androids."

Kotetsu backed away into the wall behind him, "Okay, Not-android, why did you feel the need to trick me and bring me here?"

The cyborg frowned, his synthetic skin already repairing itself.

"And if I told you, would you believe me?"

"What choice would I have? I don't know of any reason why you would want to kidnap me."

The cyborg was silent for moment. Then he spoke with a dead and broken voice, features twisting ugly. "Revenge."

"Revenge? From what? Because we broke my replacement? We were only protecting the city! And you rebuilt him or—whatever, so it's not like you actually lost him."

"Not for what you did" the cyborg rose to his feet, turning away from the Hero. "For us."

"I…don't understand…" Kotetsu frowned.

The creature of flesh and machine kept his back to him.

"Our existence.  Our pain. Our reason for being."

"I had nothing to do with that—none of us heroes did."

"But you did" he gave Kotetsu a nasty look, as if he were something disgusting. "Tell me, Mr. Tiger... What are we?"

"I have a feeling if I say 'android' or 'robot' you'll stab me, so I can't answer that." Kotetsu said in a bored voice. "If you are upset at being created, then your anger should be directed at Oroboros, not us Heroes."

"Really?"

Now it was the white rabbit's turn to sound bored.

"My God, you are thick. I had heard people say you were a slow snail, but good Lord..."

He exhaled, reproaching Kotetsu. Kneeling down until his face was inches from the Japanese's, he whispered, "I have proven we are organic... And I have said we were never meant to be hybrids... So put two and two together and answer teacher again - what are we?"

"I'm not exactly an expert in robotics and science." Kotetsu huffed, "I'm a hero. I protect people, I don't normally need to know things like that."

A slap hit him in the face, the cyborg taking on a colder, less humane, aura.

"Humans are humans, one of a kind, but what do you call something that is a copy of the original?" he hissed. "What do you call _us_?"

"Ow!" Kotetsu held his cheek, looking wide-eyed at the fake Barnaby. "I don't know! All I know is that you are not my Barnaby!" Kotetsu glanced down, sneaking a peak at his watch. Only twenty-three minutes had passed since he first activated his powers. The hour was really dragging for him.

"Good Lord I got you instead of others?" the white rabbit groaned, resisting the temptation to strangle the man. "Enough of this... I've had enough of you."

He pulled back, suddenly bored and disinterested, like a child with an overused toy. Turning away, he moved back towards the bed, the girl lying on the covers stirring slightly. Smiling, he knelt by her side, stroking the side of her face.

Silently, Kotetsu mocked the fake Barnaby's words and rolled his eyes, taking the opportunity to really look around the room for the best escape rout to take once he was able.

"I have name, you know" the white rabbit said out loud, as if sensing the mockery. "A real one - not fake number those bastards gave me. Pardon my language."

"Is that so?" Kotetsu said, only to keep his kidnapper distracted.

"Malvolio" the cyborg hummed, playing with a strand of the Rose model's white hair. "Subject MAVOLIO, short term for Modeled Advanced Volatile Operational Lethally Intelligent Organism."

"What a mouthful."

"Indeed it is" Malvolio mused, his smiling softening somewhat the longer he spent gazing upon the Rose model's face. "Do you know its origins?"

"Of course not. I'm not even sure what all of it means."

"Mm... Pity" Malvolio pulled away from the girl, smiling as her eyes started to flutter open. "This could have lasted a little longer for you."

"What, have you grown bored of our little chat? I'll take my leave then, gladly! Go to the hospital to see if they can undo whatever it is you claim to have done to me." Kotetsu said, lifting his hand in a sarcastic farewell as he stepped towards the door he assumed would lead him out.

"I wouldn't do that" Malvolio commented, as the floor gave way beneath Kotetsu's feet.

Kotetsu cried out and flailed, his hand catching the floor and gripping it to prevent him from falling. "Oh come on! How is this even fair?!" he called out, hanging on and trying to pull himself up with a lack of grace.

A shadow fell over him as Malvolio's face appeared overlooking the ledge. He smiled, almost coyly, and reached down to grab the man's hand.

"Since you're so kind as to find your own way around..."

His grin twisted into something nasty and sadistic. A hauntingly familiar orange glow surrounded the cyborg, the grip on Kotetsu's hand starting to tighten.

"...I shall gladly leave you to find answers on your own."

Pain shot through the veteran Hero as a strange, dark matter materialized from Malvolio's hand like lightning, biting into his flesh and burning away at his clothes. It was hotter than fire, colder than ice, sharper than the deadliest fangs—and merciless.

Pure, corrupted darkness.

The scream that broke from Kotetsu's throat was pure agony before it cracked, causing his voice to go silent from the shear volume of the cry. His mind was blank as it happened. Nothing else existed but the pure physical pain penetrating every inch of his body inside and out. Tears streamed down his face at an unrealistic pace, and all he wanted was it to end—even if that end was death.

The sadistic look on Malvolio's face only intensified, the pleasure of seeing his victim squirm beneath his grasp making him giddy and lightheaded, and sick all the same on the inside. He let his powers subside, knowing Kotetsu would be too weak to lash back, and leaned in to whisper into his ear.

"Impressive, is it not? They tested me for weeks, on so many things. What you see in me, is the upgraded version of what you have. Your hundred power, improved."

As soon as the pain was gone, Kotetsu's ridged body fell limp, held up by his wrist. His eyes barely open, and his chest heaving with each struggling breath. He couldn't speak—he couldn't even attempt to form words after what he'd just endured.

Malvolio leaned in a little closer. "Would you like to see it again?"

The best Kotetsu could manage was a weak whimper, pure dread and fear flickering behind his honey-colored eyes.

"No? Yes? Alright then." he lifted his pinkie and let the tiniest of shocks rage through Kotetsu.

Kotetsu's body once again stiffened and twitched violently, his eyes wide and tearful as his silent voice screamed out—or tried to.

"Amazing, is it not? Though... after so long, I doubt it's even hundred power anymore. Just this," another shock ran through the veteran's poor body, "staining darkness."

Kotetsu gave a weak cough when the third shock finally ended, blood speckling his lips.

"S-st—p…"

"Really?" Malvolio tilted his head. "Should I...let you go?"

Kotetsu attempted to nod, but was unsure if his body responded the way he'd intended it to.

"If you insist."

And with that, Malvolio let go of Kotetsu, sending him falling down the dark hole deep into the underground.

* * *

 

To be continued…


	5. Chapter 5

Kotetsu awoke hours—maybe even days later, trapped in pure darkness. He had been weak when he'd fallen, but out of desperation to survive, he had managed the energy to activate his powers at the last minuet, allowing him to survive the fall at most.

He groaned his voice still weak and sounding damaged as he pushed himself up, blinking until his eyes adjusted to the very dim glow around him seeming to come from the very walls and floors.

Nude, save for the two rings upon his finger, and skin exposed and raw from abuse and lying upon a rough, damp floor for so long, Kotetsu struggled to get to his feet, setting out to try and find a way to escape. Barnaby…he just wanted to get back to Barnaby and Kaede.

The air smelled of must and mold, but the vulnerable hero hardly paid much attention to it as he felt along the rough walls covered in something mossy.

A crash sounded somewhere ahead, a low groaning echoing out in the darkness. Footsteps, heavy and uneven, shook the ground beneath the hero's feet, like the hooves of a giant horse.

Kotetsu moaned what now? Ever since he'd left the fundraiser he'd been hit with shock after shock—some of them quite literal. When he felt a crevice in the wall, he squeezed into it as best he could to hide.

His timing was perfect. The next moment, something big and lumbering moved past the crevice, his enormous bulk blocking out the small amount of light and sealing Kotetsu in darkness. A great big brute of a man with the head of a beast, snorting and pawing at the ground like a dumb animal, as if trying to pick up the wounded Hero's scent.

Heart pounding, Kotetsu covered his mouth and nose, hoping to further hide the sounds he made.

But the motion seemed to have triggered something in the air, the beast's head jerking up with a growl. The eyes, hidden inside the helmet, glowed orange as the creature let out a furious roar, the metal and rock in the crevice beginning to shake and move. With unrestricted strength, the Minotaur ripped the crevice apart, glowering down at the now exposed hero, the body and chest hair too familiar a sight.

"A-Antonio…" Kotetsu couldn't help but gasp—though he knew this was the intended replacement for his best friend Rock Bison.

Said replacement snarled, smashing a fist against the wall, barely missing Kotetsu's head by an inch.

The near hit was enough to make Kotetsu move. He ducked down and scrambled past the creature, brushing past him between the rocks and body as he ran along the dark corridors, hoping he wouldn't trip or run into a dead end.

The Minotaur raced after him, roaring and smashing his own body against the rocks and walls of the tunnel. The ground heaved, shaking and shuddering as if a giant snake were crawling underneath, cracks appearing and footing becoming swiftly uneven as the beast's rage reigned.

Kotetsu glanced back over his shoulder at his pursuer right before he smacked full force into a wall. Not letting that stop him, he tried moving to the left, thankfully finding no other wall there blocking him as he took off in that direction.

The beast was closing in, not even corners or dead end to deter it from his path. The tunnels of this maze; they were home. He knew them like the back of his hand. And he could see through the blinding darkness the terrified movements of his prey.

Time for the final blow.

He leapt, the ground falling apart and pushing up like a great shift of tectonic plates, using all his muscles to send himself flying towards the poor Tiger.

"No choice!" Kotetsu gasped as he activated his power, the blue glow of his body helping to add light to his path—but also making him an easier target to see. However, it did help his speed, and he zoomed ahead faster, hearing the creature behind him crash into the floor where he would have been had he not used his powers.

Had he still had five minutes on his powers, he would have stayed to try and fight, but with only a short sixty seconds, Kotetsu decided using that time to try and lose the creature would be his best option, and he pressed on, taking turn after turn without thought, hoping to shake the fake Antonio.

Luck was on his side; the beast's horns caught in the floor. It roared, trying to shake itself free, but the more it struggled the deeper the horns sank, and soon the sounds of its anger faded away, the distance gained between Kotetsu and the monster.

Kotetsu let out a sigh of relief and slowed his running to save energy. His minute had expired on his hundred powers, but he had wanted to put as much distance and turns between them as he could. He continued quietly, feeling along the walls until a change in the texture caused him to stop and slide his hands over what felt like weathered wood. Curious, he ran his hands both along it, mapping out its size and shape until his suspicions were confirmed with the discovery of a cold metal handle. It was loose and falling apart, but with some jiggling, twisting, and a creaky groan, the door finally opened.

The hero took pause and held his ear to the opening, and after he was convinced that there was nothing alive inside the dark space, he slipped in, closing the door behind him.

First, he circled the room, feeling along the walls to find that it was enclosed. The walls felt old and grimy with dirt, but they were smoother and made of plaster rather than the stone from the tunnels. Along the walls he'd felt some tables, shelves, and cabinets, along with a large light switch near the door that proved useless. Luckily, in a drawer, his fingers located the unmistakable form of a candle, and a box of matches. With a little prayer that the matches would work, he struck a few before one flickered uncontrollably before calming into a single small flame which he used to light the candle.

The room was much larger than he imagined it to be, the candle's flame shedding a dim yellow light over its contents. Operating tables, large shattered cylinder tanks reaching for the ceiling with tubes and wires dangling inside them occupied the larger space to his left, but he made his way to the right, finding a desk with a dusty journal balanced haphazardly on the edge, and a dusty long lab coat hanging over the chair.

Kotetsu set down his candle on the desk and took the coat, measuring out its size. It didn't look like it'd fit comfortably, but it was better than the nothing he had on. He turned his back to the desk and gave the coat a sharp shake, the fabric snapping in the air as most of the dust broke free. Coughing, the hero gave it a few smaller shakes before slipping it on.

He had been right. It was too small and it dug into his underarms uncomfortably. But he had managed to button it closed. The fit was off as if it had been made for a larger woman, but Kotetsu ignored the added space up top and smaller space in the waist as he turned back, curiously opening the black leather bound journal.

Using the candle light to read the scrawling text, his eyes widened. The words were all too telling of what had happened in that room, and he found himself sucked into the story told through the notations and observations made in the pages.

Experiments, genetic play upon human capabilities.

The journal, which supported the symbol of Oroboros sketched upon the first page, told of the progress of cloning. Small things at first: growing hearts and other organs with the intent of progressing medicine. But it soon took a dark turn.

Barnaby was first. A young boy with green eyes and light golden hair had been brought in by a man that Kotetsu knew could be no other man but Maverick himself, and they had taken blood, skin, and saliva samples from the young boy before Maverick cleared the memories and left with the boy slung over his shoulders. And that's when the true intent behind this very room began.

Scientists got to work using the genetic makeup of young Barnaby to create another. Over the course of years, they became successful and had a body growing in a tank at an accelerated rate. But the process had lead to damaged pigment in the clone's skin and hair, causing him to be pure white, and his eyes stained red. It was a change that hadn't been expected, but it was still progress. They experimented on their creation, torturing him and injecting him with different things Kotetsu couldn't pronounce when the clone started showing signs of also having the NEXT powers the original boy was starting to show in his life outside in the outside world.

They wanted to improve their Barnaby. Wanted to see how powerful they could make a natural NEXT power go through enhancements.

And then, dated shortly before Barnaby's introduction onto Hero TV, seven more blood samples were received, taken from the office of the private medical staff working for Hero TV so that the Heroes could be treated in private without their identity becoming known, should they need treatment. And from those samples seven more clones were created. Their aging sped up so that they would be closer to the ages of their originals. Each one of them a perfect copy save the albino look to their skin, hair, and the blood red eyes. Even their powers were the same when tested.

The experiments became crueler—going as far as combining the clone's genetics with those of animals on top of the enhancements upon their NEXT powers. Each clone soon lost what made them perfect copies. Their powers becoming all the more deadly until the point that they weren't even the same powers as the originals anymore. They all only looked like ghost versions of their originals.

The journal went on to detail out each enhanced powers.

 

 _RBC-_ _Energy released from his body allows him to manipulate raw materials around him and absorb them into his body to turn himself into a literal weapon/armored tank of a beast.  
FEC- His fires have smoldered to create toxic, thick black smoke as a fog that surrounds him when he's hunting. Smoke released can be toxic enough that it can potentially melt rock into magma.  
SHC- Uses the wind/air around him to his will, manipulating it into dark tornados and thunderclouds.  
DKC- Telepathy telekinesis abilities.  
OCC- Undetectable Invisibility.  
BRC- Her voice will freeze the will and hearts of those around her, consuming them with fear and bending them to her will, turning them into puppets.  
_ _WTC- Has the ability to steal any NEXT powers simply from touch. His stolen power lasts a full hour and until that hour is up, the NEXT he touched is unable to use their powers at all.  
_ _BBJC- Possesses a dark energy that creates great pain at will. Powers keep advancing upon their own and grow more dangerous._

 

The journal continued on with details of experiments until the scrolling handwriting abruptly stopped upon a damaged and blood-spattered page and a new handwriting appeared, the ink thick from a heavy hand, and messy, as if it belonged to a child just learning the fine motor skills of writing.

They described an explosion, the clones in their pods becoming damaged to different degrees. Robotics were used to save each of them, turning them into half machine, half clone—cyborgs. Two of the clones, Barnaby and Blue Rose's clones, suffered only small injuries and had less robotics applied to them. Fire Emblem and Rock Bison's clones were both severally damaged and heavily modified with robotic parts, while the rest ranged between in mid-level damage.

Kotetsu's own clone was modified by being combined with what was left of H-01; the robotic replacement he and his fellow heroes had fought, bringing the two copies of him together as one.

And the last page contained only one haunting line.

_Further advancements will be made._

The Hero trembled as he closed the journal and pocketed it. So that was what he was dealing with. Not androids at all, but genetically advanced clones. His eyes moved to the shattered tanks and a shiver ran down his body.

"What have they done..?"

He finished scouring the room for supplies that might be useful, pocketing them in his lab coat before making sure the time he'd spent in the room hadn't allowed the clone of Antonio to close in on him. Candle leading the way, Kotetsu slipped out and continued along the labyrinth of passages, searching for a way out.

One thing was sure. He didn't want any of the clones finding him.

Up ahead, the tunnel was smoldered with a thick, dark fog, the stale smell of cinders burning wafting through the air.

Kotetsu haulted. It had to be Nathan's clone, based on what he'd read in the journal. Entering the thick smoke was a bad idea. He quietly backed up to choose another path.

Fortunately the other way was clear, no other clones to been seen or heard from. Time passed slowly inside the dark tunnels, the light of the candle revealing old metal walls and floors that had long since melded with rock and clay. Like a tomb, old and decrepit. The grave of a horrible secret laid to unrest, the dead rising up to haunt the halls and wreck havoc on any unfortunate soul who happened upon them.

The hall continued on for about twenty minutes, doors appearing left and right, some leading nowhere and others jammed shut, there was literally nothing except a straight path for the longest time.

Then the repetition broke into a forked crossroad of two hallways. Left or right. Two choices.

Which one to choose?

The lone candle Kotetsu had found flickered. It's flame close to his fingers as he held the bottom of it. Soon it'd go out and he'd only have the box of matches at his disposal for a light source. Scratching his chin, he examined each path available to him, soon discovering that one had a slight draft, and the other felt dead and stagnant. With a nod, he turned left towards the one with a slight breeze and started along it.

It seemed he'd picked the right path...for about five minutes.

No sooner had Kotetsu wandered more than a few feet did the path demonstrate its flaws. Five new paths to choose from, five new ways in the labyrinth.

Kotetsu sighed, his feet aching and bloody from so much walking on rough floors. "Why can't getting out of here be easier?" he muttered to himself as he began to inspect each path for a clue as to which way to go.

But there was nothing to give him any sign of hope, just darkness greeting his eyes.

With a sigh, Kotetsu sat down to rest a moment, eyeing the paths before he finally lifted a hand and pointed at each one for each syllable he spoke. He started on the far right one and worked his way left before skipping back over to the right.

" _Little bunny Barnaby hopping through the city, picking up the criminals and racking up all the poiiiints_!" he sang out to the tune of the children's song _Little Bunny Foo Foo_.

When his little tune was done, his finger pointed to the forth path and he stuck with that choice, trying it out first and wishing he had something to mark his paths with.

Luck was on his side that day, the fourth path being the safest and easiest route the man had taken yet. The floor was smoother, having been spared the fate of merging with the bedrock, and thus offered a small amount of relief for the weary veteran Hero. The halls were still dark but seemed to be in tact, doors left and right baring the names of different wards or offices.

But his candle was flickering and growing dimmer by the second, and before he knew it, it had gone out. Kotetsu paused again to let his eyes adjust, hoping there was some sort of light somewhere.

Just off to his left, a door was open a crack. However, further up ahead there seemed to be a slight orange glow, as if from a torch. However, that could be either a very good or very bad thing.

The hero chose to check out the dim outline of the cracked door, first slowly moving towards it and listening for sounds. Nothing could be heard, the inside dark but seemingly empty. Wanting to be sure it was as empty as it seemed, Kotetsu struck one of his precious matches and held it up in the room in hopes to see a little of what was inside.

Empty and void, just an old set of quarters. Faded wallpaper clung to the walls, yellowish in color. A moth eaten bed sat off to the side, up against the wall, next to an old rotting desk. Upon the surface lay piles upon piles of old paper, some crumples and a large portion suspiciously dyed red. It was then the Hero noticed the stain of red spreading up from the desk up along the wall, leaving a long, splattered streak.

And there, right at the end in a small corner, lay a corpse. A white coated skeleton, its coating torn and a candle sitting in its hand.

"Of all the creepy—ow!" The flame on the match burnt his fingers and died. He sighed and entered the room, slowly making his way over to the skeleton. "I'm sorry; I need this more than you do." Kotetsu whispered in respect as he felt along the bones to the candle which he paced in his pocket.

His stomach growled. "You don't by any chance have some nice fried rice lying around? Maybe a sandwich?"

Silence was his only answer. "I didn't think so, thanks anyway…"

He felt his way over to the bed he'd seen and lay down on it. He had no idea how much time had passed, but he suspected that he should rest while he had the chance.

"Bunny…Kaede…" he closed his eyes, missing his family.

* * *

To be continued...


	6. Chapter 6

Barnaby frowned, the light of his desk lamp his only companion in the wee hours of the morning. A week ago, his husband had stormed out on a Hero TV fundraiser held in Barnaby's honor regarding the blond's recent release from the hospital. In the wake of the condoling celebration, something had hit a nerve with Kotetsu, and the Japanese man had stormed out of the building in haste and he had not been heard of since.

That night Barnaby returned home exhausted and stressed out to an empty bed, and gave no thought as he collapsed into the covers to sleep away the events of the evening, mistakenly convinced his husband had taken the guest bedroom instead for the night - something Kotetsu did when he was upset or needed to be alone.

Even late the next morning, when he'd awoken and found the house empty, he'd assumed the veteran Hero had simply gone out. But when he didn't return by nightfall, something finally didn't sit right with the blond.

He'd called and asked around. Not one person had seen hide or hair of Kotetsu. And no one, much to the blond's growing fear, had witnessed or heard the veteran return home the evening before. His heart pounded wildly, and with a sinking stomach Barnaby knew something was wrong, and phoned the police headquarters of Sternbild to issue a search for his missing husband.

Days later, and despite the missing ads that had been posted, no sign of Kotetsu, no leads in the missing person's case. He'd called his mother-in-law to see if Kotetsu had ventured off home to Oriental Town, and was promptly greeted with a round of angry scolding and panic, all in Japanese. Mostly for the fact that Barnaby hadn't called her sooner.

Since then, he hadn't slept or ate. He refrained from calling Kaede, hoping to hear even a tiny smidge of news before the week was up before breaking to her that her father was MIA.

Until then, he did his own digging but so far was coming up empty handed. And it frustrated him to no end.

Stifling a yawn, his stomach churning with worry and anxiety nibbling at his nerves, Barnaby almost leapt out his chair as the familiar hum of his phone broke the silence of the morning.

It was a private number, not the police or Justice Bureau.

Scowling, too much on edge to be pleasant, he grabbed his phone and flipped it open, wondering who in the hell had the nerve to call him at such an hour.

"Any word on Kotetsu, Handsome?" Nathan's voice spoke up before Barnaby could so much as grunt into the phone.

Barnaby sighed, his temper smoldering at the smooth rolling voice of Fire Emblem. He slouched back into his seat, tiredly rubbing at his eyes beneath his glasses.

"No..." he admitted. "Not a word. Anything on your end?"

"I was afraid of that." Nathan sighed at the other end, "Handsome, come see me. I'm afraid I have heard something."

"'Something'?" Barnaby sat up with a frown, his anxiety starting to fire up at Nathan's words. "What do you mean? Have you found Kotetsu?!"

"Not exactly. Just come over. I think this will be easier in person."

Suspicion simmered in his chest, but Barnaby knew that any information was vital and necessary. With a resigned sigh, he hung up on Nathan and readied himself, taking a quick cold shower and changing his clothes before heading out, not even bothering to spend time on his hair or grab a bite to eat. It didn't matter - he wasn't hungry—too worried to even bother thinking for himself at this point.

Climbing into his car, he drove down to Nathan's, realizing the burden of his exhaustion as he struggled to stay awake behind the wheel. Thankfully, it was still early and dark out, the roads void of cars in the Gold stage at this hour.

Arriving at his fellow Hero's expensive home forty minutes later, he parked his car in the overly long driveway and trudged out, dragging his feet on his way to the door.

Nathan held the door open for him and ushered him inside to the lavish living room. "Please have a seat." He sighed, taking his own seat in a large leather chair with a straight back. He didn't speak again until the blond was seated.

"First off, for the secret I heard today when Saito was talking to Agnes—Well, really I heard Agnes respond to it.  He told her that there had been a break-in at his labs and Kotetsu's suit was stolen from its place next to yours."

Barnaby's head snapped up, staring at Nathan in disbelief. "What?"

"It's gone. At least, his current version. The older models are still there in storage, and the upgrade Saito has been working on for you both was untouched. It wasn't nicely taken, either. It was ripped out and Saito apparently was complaining about the damages he'd have to fix once they got it back. Kotetsu definitely wasn't the one to take it as he knows how to do so properly."

Barnaby frowned, his brow furrowing in concern. "But... who would steal it? The consequences are too big, and only those who know how to use the suit are able to use it safely. Even... its custom made for Kotetsu alone... not everyone can fit into that. Criminals would have no use for it... so why....?"

It just did not make sense to him.

"I can't tell you that, myself, Handsome." Nathan shook his head, "But let's not dwell on that. Time for the real reason I asked you here.

He waited a moment, studying Barnaby's worried features.

"I have been asking around since you told us that Kotetsu was missing," he began, smoothing out the wrinkles in his purple silk house coat, "And no one has much to say—except this one young woman. She said that on the night of the fundraiser, she had seen a man fitting Kotetsu's description not far from the event, and he wasn't alone. He was with someone. Someone she was able to identify quite confidently."

The news sent alarms off in Barnaby's head, his breathing starting to quicken and become uneven. "What are you saying...?"

"Handsome, I'm saying we have a lead—a witness who has seen him between when any of us last saw him and when you discovered he was missing." Nathan leaned forward, "This woman said he was very familiar with this man he was with. They seemed to have hugged and held hands before Kotetsu pulled him off out of sight."

The pink-haired hero held up his hand when Barnaby showed signs of becoming upset, "Now, don't go assuming things. The witness identified this mystery man, remember?" he paused a moment before he pointed with a long painted finger at the blond, "She was very insistent that he was with one Barnaby Brooks Junior, so he couldn't possibly have been in any real trouble."

Nathan sighed and leaned back, crossing his long legs with grace. "The problem is that you never left the little party until it was over. And you can't be in two places at the same time. So I almost wrote it off as the woman imagining things."

Nathan then pushed himself up and strolled over to a table, opening a drawer and reaching inside.

"But then I went to the location she told me she had seen the two of you, and I searched the area. That's when I discovered this in the gutter." He said, turning around with Kotetsu's mask in his fingers. He held it up for Barnaby to see.

With shaking hands, Barnaby took the mask, staring dumbly at its tattered appearance as if it were hiding a hidden message or clue from him. His throat was choking on words. Nothing could save him from the suffocating fear and slight hurt he was feeling. What did all this mean?

If someone said they saw Barnaby with Kotetsu... but it wasn't him.

"What...what..."

Helpless, he looked up at Nathan pleadingly for an answer, any at all.

"Handsome, I hate to be the one to say it, but we have seen similar before. We had two Wild Tigers running around at one point; and if now we have two of you—"

The chair fell over onto its side with a crash as Barnaby rose to his feet. Clutching the mask tightly in his shaking hands, he began to pace the room, chewing furiously at his lip.

"Oroboros." Nathan finished his thought. "They must be reviving their robotic investments. Kotetsu would have had no reason to believe it wasn't you he was walking off with. At least not at first."

Barnaby's shoulders slumped. So what now? His husband was most likely in the hands of Ouroboros, with no insight on what had become of his fate.

"So," Nathan sighed after a deathly silence stretched on too long for his comfort, "we have a lead and a theory…what is our next move?"

But Barnaby couldn't answer him, his body slowly swaying from side to side before collapsing, exhaustion and hunger finally taking its toll.

Being the hero he was, Nathan swooped in and caught Barnaby in his arms. "Oh Handsome, this is not what I pictured when I thought of you swooning into my arms." He frowned, sweeping his lean, muscular body into his arms and moving to a guest room and slipping him into the bed.

"It can't be helped. I'm making you something hearty for breakfast once you awaken." He gently cooed before closing the door behind him as he left.

 

* * *

Kotetsu awoke to the sound of pure hunger from his empty stomach, and he rolled onto his back with a groan, opening his eyes to the darkness which only reminded him that he was still trapped in the nightmare. Not knowing how much sleep he'd gotten, he pushed himself up and lit the new candle before moving to the door and listening to the other side before he slipped out and continued along his way.

The light he remembered from before had vanished, which could be a good thing for all Kotetsu knew as he pressed on, candle leading the way. Its flame protected by his scuffed and dirty hand. Eventually, he found a staircase leading upwards and he eagerly mounted it, climbing up and away from the dark, musty labyrinth and hoping he'd find himself finding freedom.

Instead he found himself on another floor identical to the one below, dark and lying in pieces, mixed in with stone and earth. And yet, somewhere down the line, a slight gust of wind blew, ruffling the man's hair and coat, tickling his skin.

And with it, carried the slight sent of something barbequing.

Kotetsu's hunger won out, and without a thought about the dangers, he followed his nose, desperate for something to eat.

The smell grew strong, almost luring, as if something was trying to call out Kotetsu and seduce him with the promise of food. Whether it was a genuine promise was another question.

Because once again, the road forked left and right, the smell coming from both.

The hero made a frustrated groan, his body trembling with need of something to eat. He swallowed a mouthful of saliva that had gathered before it could drip down his bearded chin. This time, he didn't examine his options; he simply tried the right passage.

The smell led him down a dark and narrow path, nothing to give him any sign of hope for about ten minutes. Then, the silence was abruptly broken. Something metal, something sharp, scrapping against the wall right behind him.

Kotetsu gasped and spun around, his candle flickering and almost going out.

And there, standing inconspicuously, was Ivan, the light having blinded him and forcing him to close his eyes and rub at them with a hand.

Kotetsu backed away quickly, his eyes searching for a place to hide—but there was none.

"Mmm..." the sudden sound of Ivan's voice couldn't be any more convincing. "Too bright, Kotetsu!"

He rubbed at his eyes with a balled fist, only his head and shoulders visible in the dim light of the candle.

Kotetsu frowned, gripping the candle tighter, "How do you know my name?"

"I work with you." Ivan said, still rubbing at his eyes. "As a Hero."

"Nice try." Kotetsu shook his head, "I know you're his clone."

"I work with you." Ivan repeated, a bit more slowly. "As a Hero."

"Prove it."

"…'Prove it'?" Ivan repeated. "Are you real Kotetsu?"

"Of course I am. It's you where the doubt lies." Kotetsu narrowed his eyes, "I won't make the same mistake twice, and trusting the clone Barnaby's word for being Bunny is what got me down here to begin with. So if you are actually who you claim to be, you would show some understanding in my lack of trust."

"Understand." he nodded, wincing. "It's too bright, Kotetsu!"

"It's a candle. It's dim at best and I can't control it. You're nuts if you think I'll put it out and drown us in darkness."

"Too bright, Kotetsu..." Ivan whimpered once more, ducking his head.

"Too bad. I'm keeping it." The hero insisted stubbornly.

Ivan whined, the sound coming out more animalistic and suspiciously metallic.

That was the proof Kotetsu needed that this wasn't the Ivan he knew. But despite his lack of trust, he did feel sorry for him. It was completely possible that some of the clones weren't as corrupt as the fake Barnaby was.

"Just don't look at it."

The fake Ivan groaned, slowly lifting his head back up. His hand unfurled, revealing thin fingers with abnormally long, sharp claws. Eyes opened slowly, blood red and unreadable. And then, as the candle light flickered, he brought his other arm out of the shadows.

But in the place of his hand, coated with layers of dried blood and flesh, was a long, gigantic rusted hook.

"Kotetsu sighed, the sound sad as he took in the boy's appearance, "You wouldn't pass as the real Ivan." He shook his head, daring a step closer, the light shed by his candle showing better detail of white skin and hair.

Something brushed against Kotetsu's bare thigh, Ivan's clone slowly becoming more accustomed to the light and growing ever more curious, it seemed, with the human.

Kotetsu weighed his options, he may have found an ally, or, this clone was biding his time before attacking.

"Do you know the way out of here?"

Ivan's clone just stared at him.

"…or maybe where there is food?"

Another blank stare.

Kotetsu sighed and nodded before turning to continue on his way. He was so hungry he could feel his stomach cramping up on him. It was far from pleasant, but there was nothing he could do, and the smell guiding him seemed to have disappeared.

Metal scrapped across the floor, the Ivan clone following him close behind.

"Too bright, Kotetsu..."

"How long have you been down here in the dark?"

No answer was given, other than another animalistic whimper followed by... panting?

"Have you ever left these halls?"

A bark answered him this time.

Kotetsu halted and turned around.

And there in the light of the candle could he fully see what he was up against. Ivan's clone was bizarre; bipedal and position on the balls of his feet, his thicker legs holding up most of the weight of his body. His arms were thin but his hands were smaller than average, claws making up for the thinner, shorter fingers, and a large hook that seemed to act both as a weapon and an extra source of balance for his oddly postured body. But the strangest of all was his backside sporting a long, thin, hairless tail.

The latter of which was wagging.

Kotetsu stumbled back in shock, the flame almost flickering out. When had he—why had he—there had been no such mentions of such a thing in the journal he'd found!

The Ivan clone tilted his head to the side, emitting an odd crooning noise.

"What had they done to you..?"

The clone tilted his head to the other side, crooning more and readjusting his hook arm.

Kotetsu sighed and turned to continue along his way, hoping the creature that used to be an Ivan clone wouldn't suddenly attack.

Instead, Ivan continued to follow him, until the tip of his hook was tapping the back of Kotetsu's leg and the hot stench of his breath lay on the nape of his neck.

The hero shivered and pulled away, "Please don't, this place is creepy enough and I don't want to accidently hurt you—or get hurt if something should suddenly happen."

"Something should suddenly happen." the clone chirped, sounding almost as if he were considering it.

"Unless that something is good food, I'd rather not have that happen." Kotetsu sighed.

"Happen." the clone repeated happily.

Kotetsu glanced back at him as he checked locked doors.

"Happen!" his companion chirped again, seemingly very pleased with himself, flailing his hook wildly.

Kotetsu couldn't help but smile, casting his eyes downward, "You remind me of my daughter when she was very small…"

"Happen, happenhappehappennnn!" came the answering cheer of joy.

"Definitely remind me of her. Were you never properly taught speech?" It was beginning to dawn on Kotetsu that he was looking at a child, not a monster.

The clone stopped and gave him a confused look.

"S-Sp...Sp...?" he questioned, trying to sound out the word as if it were foreign to him.

"Speak," Kotetsu nodded, speaking slowly, "To use words and communicate verbally—with your mouth like I am now."

"Happen?"

"Happen means…an experience…an effect of an event."

The clone just stared at him.

"You met me. That is an event that happened."

Ivan's clone tilted his head to the side, crooning at Kotetsu.

"Were you given a name?"

The clone gave him a blank stare, then stopped, perking up with wide eyes. His head turned to the side, a soft whistling noise echoing down the hall. With a whine, he covered his ears, shaking and withering as if in pain.

Then, out of the blue, he lunged with an angry screech, eyes wild and tearing up, tackling Kotetsu to the ground.

"Crap!" Kotetsu gasped as his back hit the ground, his dropped candle going out. He'd gotten too comfortable and let his guard down. Claws cut into his flesh as if he were only butter. Screaming out in pain, he fought back, trying to break free without his power. Once again, though, he found himself with no choice and he activated it, giving a swift kick into the creature's middle and causing him to fly off him.

Kotetsu pushed himself up, clutching one of his more serious cuts as he took off, a streak of blue in the darkness. He hadn't the time to relocate his candle.

It proved a fatal mistake. No sooner had he leapt away into the darkness did he slam headlong into something broad and muscular. Screeches of anger rattled his tender ear drums, brisk crackling winds billowing about his body, battering and bruising him relentlessly like beating fists. Arms grabbed him in a vice grip, slowly constricting him as the monster rose up into the air, spinning and rocketing about wildly.

Disoriented, Kotetsu brought back his fist and hit his unseen attacker as hard as he could. But where there had been supposed to be the soft belly of a person, his hand only seemed to dent metal. He tried again and again, only finding metal in vital spots. Neck, jaw, gut… Kotetsu did what seemed to be harmless damage until his powers ran out, his one minuet up.

The creature was equally displeased, screaming angrily before chucking Kotetsu hard, sending him flying before swooping around in preparation for another attack.

Kotetsu gasped and rolled to the side, his shoulder hitting a rough wall, but his arm feeling a crevasse. Hoping whatever clone or creature was after him was as large as it had felt, Kotetsu slid down into it, ignoring the unpleasant sticky spider's silk that clung to his exposed skin and the ill-fitting lab coat he wore.

The monster followed him, right up to the crevice. It stuck its hand and arms in, trying to grab Kotetsu and drag him out.

"You!" It growled in a voice familiar. "Who are you?!"

"Someone who just wants to get home to his family!" Kotetsu gasped, cowering in as deep as he could into the gap in the wall.

"Lies!" the monster screeched, sharp silver teeth bared. "And more lies!"

"Who are you to accuse a father and husband of lies such as that?"

"One who trespasses on the land of the damned!" it hisses, managing to dig the rock away, fully revealing its face. "Who exists while we should not!"

"I'm not trespassing! I was dropped in here by one of your own. I'd like only two things. To eat and drink something—and to get out in mostly one piece to my family. My daughter and my husband. Please just allow me on my way!" Kotetsu pleaded to the clone of Keith. Kotetsu's eyes had adjusted to the dark, and it seemed there was just enough light to show a face not unlike Sky High's. Only this one had glinting jaws of steel.

The metal teeth, tarnished in several places, snapped at the Hero viciously, drawing blood from their owner's own chapped lips.

"Please—just let me leave this place."

The creature pulled back, ready to try again, when something white and fast crashed into its side, knocking it away. Screeches and snarls filled the air, inhuman and eerie enough to send shivers down Kotetsu's spine.

The hero dragged himself along the crevasse until he could go no further and he slipped out, past the two fighting creatures. The second looked like the Ivan clone, but he didn't stick around to find out, hurrying away.

The tunnel soon grew silent again, an eerie chill sweeping through the air.

Kotetsu closed his eyes, hoping nothing else would happen as he blindly searched for a way out, his raw hands sliding over the rough walls.

The familiar sound of metal scrapping against the wall echoed behind him.

"It just won't end…" Kotetsu gasped, speeding up as much as he dared while without a light.

The scraping grew louder, mixing with loud roars and squawks that slowly closed in on the poor exhausted veteran. Then, an orange glow arose from the depths of his chaser, illuminating the cavern.

Kotetsu tried pushing himself faster, his feet becoming clumsy and tripping him up, sending him skidding across the rough floor, ripping his coat and skin.

A loud howl echoed in the tunnels, the clone of Ivan Karelin trembling as the orange glow surrounded his body, his form beginning to shift and change before Kotetsu's eyes.

The hero scrambled to get back to his feet, feeling like he was being hunted. Why couldn't his powers still last the full five minutes anymore?

Behind him, bones shifted and flesh rippled. Muscles bulged and twisted, limbs turning and deforming into something strange. The clone's human head, his face riddled with pain, bubbled and boiled, sickly morphing into something snout-like and canine.

Limping, Kotetsu pressed on as quickly as he could, turning corners and trying to lose the monstrous clone.

Then, suddenly, all went quiet. But Kotetsu didn't slow, pressing on to put as much distance between them as possible. He'd stopped thinking about reserving energy; he just wanted to find his way out of the nightmarish maze of darkness as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, it seemed his chance of escape lifted further and further out of reach with every unfaithful turn. In this case, a dead end, with no way to turn other than back the way he came.

Back to the monster.

"Damn it!" Kotetsu reached another dead end and hit the wall. He rarely cursed, always keeping his language clean as a father and a public figure, but it seemed the only appropriate thing he could utter as tears of frustration stung his eyes.

* * *

To be continued…


	7. Chapter 7

As fate seemed to frown upon him, it also cackled with glee as an orange glow flickered in from the corner. A large paw stepped into the opening of the dead end tunnel, followed by that same large hook, now used as a prosthetic paw. A lithe body covered in white fur, the one thin tail now in full bloom of fluff and feathery hairs. But most striking was the head, no longer human but that of a large, white wolf.

Kotetsu swallowed and turned to face the monster blocking his only path. It was far too soon for his powers to be recharged…his chances weren't looking good.

The giant wolf approached, silent as it came up to the terrified Hero. It growled softly, sniffing him suspiciously, his wounds brushed by a slimy, cold dog nose.

Kotetsu grit his teeth against the added pain of his wounds being touched, squeezing his eyes closed, "Kaede…Barnaby…I love you…" he gasped out, feeling this was truly the end. If he made a sudden move to get over or around the monstrous wolf, he knew the wolf's reflexes would be faster and he'd be done.

And then the wolf wagged its tail and licked his face.

Kotetsu stiffened and looked up at the glowing wolf, "You need to make up your mind on attacking me or not…"

The licks continued, the beast butting its head against Kotetsu's chest and nosing at his hand.

The hero grunted in pain, "Careful, I'm quite beaten up…"

The wolf whined, nuzzling him as if to sympathize.

Kotetsu sighed, placing a hand on the massive head.

It crooked happily, eyes closing in contentment. An ear, however, flicked and flattened against the broad skull.

A figure, too shadowed to see yet too familiar for Kotetsu to mistaken, stepped into the light and fired off a large cannon of a gun.

With a shriek, the wolf was blown to the side, a large wound ripping into its back. It hit the wall and collapsed by Kotetsu's leg, mouth parted as if in a silent scream of agony, unable to move.

"Ivan!" Kotetsu gasped for lack of a name for the wolf. He dropped to his bleeding knees and strained his eyes to take a look at the damage done.

"That isn't Ivan." a metallic voice sneered coolly. " _It isn't yours_ to call. It's a beast. A dumb animal. A dog-"

The wolf moaned in pain, tears rolling down its furry face as the gun was raised and aimed again at the large bleeding tear way of flesh on its back.

"A _failure_."

Kotetsu hurried forward and pushed the gun off to the side, "I know he's not Ivan! What I called him isn't what matters. He's unstable, but he's no failure. He's living—he matters!"

"Does he?" The cold face of H-01 peered at him. "Do we?"

Seizing the moment, he grabbed Kotetsu's wrist and took off, rocketing away with his capture and leaving the wounded dog behind.

"Let go!" Kotetsu gasped, "Of course you matter—everyone matters! Even those who do bad things matter!"

But Kotetsu's words were lost in the roar of the wind rushing past the biorobot, H-01 carrying the Hero around and up a large ventilation shaft, over a hundred feet before light shone down upon them.

Kotetsu gasped, squeezing his eyes shut against the burn of such bright light, being far too used to the darkness, and at best, dim candle light or glow of NEXT powers.

Sensing his discomfort, H-01 smirked and upped his speed, the light growing too bright too fast as they broke free of the darkness and basked in the glare of the surface world above.

"Master..."

H-01 chucked Kotetsu, the floor beneath the Hero hard and smelling of smoky apple wood.

"I have brought him."

Kotetsu groaned, slowly blinking as his eyes adjusted.

Truly, the hero was quite the sight. Filthy, his body which was starting to loose muscle mass as malnutrition and a lack of any food or water for so long kicked in, was covered in scrapes, cuts, and bruises, some still bleeding. His face in need of a nice shave, and his hair a tangled mess.

Amused chuckling grated against his ears, heels clicking against the hardwood floor as someone approached the fallen Hero. They knelt, blocking out the harsh light, and Malvolio's smug face quickly came into view.

"Oh my... look what the ugly cat dragged in~"

He took Kotetsu's chin, fingering the stubble and scrapped skin, tutting like a scolding mother to her child.

"Such a mess... what ever happened to you?"

Kotetsu jerked his face away from the clone of his husband, "I'm sure you have a pretty good idea of what happened to me."

"Hmm, so it would seem." he chuckled. "Though frankly..."

His smile fell to a frown.

"That damn dog didn't do his job. How shameful. Never realized how useless dumb, brainless animals are. My mistake."

He looked up at H-01 with narrowed eyes, as if asking for confirmation, and when the android nodded, he shrugged and rose to his feet, dusting his knees off.

"No matter... We have other things at hand."

He strode away to the other side of the small room, where Kotetsu could now see the light source in the form of over a high quality, massive holographic computer screen. A large keyboard sat in the place of a desk, the chair to which Malvolio sat himself into and swiveled around to face his charge.

"Tonight's show shall be most riveting, I dare say. Wouldn't you agree-"

He pressed a button on the control panel, a single screen enlarging and flicking on to reveal the painstakingly familiar warmth of the HeroTV Studio's training room.

Malvolio's lips quirked in another twisted grin.

"-my little Hero?"

Kotetsu frowned in confusion, "What are you planning?"

"Oh nothing much" Malvolio waved him off. "Nothing yet. We still have ten minutes."

He closed the screen, rising to his feet and strolling up and past the Hero, towards a door on the opposite wall.

"Why don't we take to my room and have a chat? I'm just dying to hear how thrilling your time downstairs in the pallor was~"

Kotetsu pushed himself to his feet with difficulty, "I know what you are, what all of you are." He stated, his hand slipping into his pocket to grab the journal.

"Oh?" Malvolio stopped for a moment.

The hero held up his find, "You are clones. Copies of us heroes that have been enhanced in different ways."

Malvolio smirked. "So you know the truth then. What we are. What we were. The monstrosities that make us. What we have become."

"I also know that while you have a right to be angry at those who did this to you, you don't have to be like this. You can be good people."

"Hmph" Malvolio sniffed, turning back and pushing open the door. "You say that as if it's easy. You still don't understand. Not that you would. Human."

He slipped into his private quarters, smiling at the sight of the Rose clone sitting on the edge of his bed. Making his way over to her, he knelt and touched her cheek, the softness never leaving his eyes.

And without any word, she smiled back at him.

"You may not have been born, but you are all human, too." Kotetsu followed and hung in the doorway, " Malvolio, you have Barnaby's DNA— _human_ DNA."

Malvolio did not answer, whether intending to ignore the man or too caught up in his own interests like a child intrigued by a new toy. Smiling up at the Rose model, he brushed a strand of her white hair away from her face, speaking softly.

"Amaryllis, where is your flower? Hath it fallen from thy stem again? Hath it floated downstream to the bay? Oh Amaryllis, will you answer me so?"

And answer she did, in a voice that echoed like a bell, yet sounded fainter than the gentlest of whispers. It was warm for him, yet so cold to the world, like shards of ice piercing the heart. It chilled the air, and in doing so, froze the will and minds of those not of her kind around her.

"It lays in dreamscape, brother dear."

From the moment her soft voice reached his ears, Kotetsu froze, his body slightly limp as all thoughts seemed to disappear from his mind. A blank look erasing all emotion from his dirt-covered face.

Seeing the change overtake his prisoner, Malvolio's smile darkened. Rising to his feet, he motioned for H-01 to take Kotetsu, holding his hand out for his sister to take before leading the way over to a prepared set up by the fireplace.

Taking a seat in the most ornate, expensive chair, he motioned for his sister to sit on the arm, H-01 unceremoniously dumping Kotetsu on the ground nearby in the corner away from sight for the time being. Malvolio shot the biorobot a look, the latter of which returned with a blank stare.

Scowling, he shook his head, reaching out to pick up an empty wine glass sitting on the coffee table nearby. Examining it curiously in his hand, playing no attention to H-01 as the biorobot retreated to fetch some wine, he mused.

"I believe it's time to begin the show, don't you think?"

* * *

To be continued…


	8. Chapter 8

"Here." Karina walked over to Barnaby, holding out an energy bar she'd gotten from her bag, "You haven't eaten anything since we got here early this morning."

Barnaby blinked, pulled from his stupor by the gesture, slowly nodding his thanks as he took the bar from Rose's hand with trembling fingers.

A week and a half. Too many days had gone by without word on Kotetsu's whereabouts. The lead he and Nathan had discovered proved useless, no one able to give an accurate description of the kidnapper other than they looked completely identical to Barnaby.

In fact, some even refused to believe that it wasn't Barnaby himself. The more he went out to ask, the more he was finding strange condolences and sympathy. People who thought he was in denial. People who said he was going to be okay and that he was "better off without that low life of a partner". People who strongly believed that Kotetsu had abandoned him, abandoned their team.

Barnaby knew that Kotetsu was pretty unpopular, but ever since the incident with Mark Schneider, he'd seen the rating for Wild Tiger sky rocket. He'd assumed, a bit foolishly he now realized, that people had warmed up to the older Hero like they'd used to.

And oh how wrong he was. It was all over the news, ever since Tiger's MIA noticed was put out. Put downs, accusations, sympathy for Barnaby...

It was all there and bare for the lonely husband to see. And it was slowly eating Barnaby away bit by bit, pain and anger churning inside of him.

He couldn't escape it. And here it was again, on the news at that very moment for all to hear. Words on Kotetsu's betrayal.

"You know," the long haired blond said, sitting down next to Barnaby and leaning back, looking up at the news report at the photograph displayed of Kotetsu, mask in place as he always insisted upon when it came to anything Wild Tiger-related. "I'm deathly worried, too, and just as angered at the type of press Kotetsu's story is given. Anyone who knows him would never say such things as they do."

She sighed and glanced at Barnaby." To tell you the truth, I have been upset at you for quite some time. I was jealous of you. I had…had feelings for that lame old man for a long time and then all of a sudden I find out that you had swooped in and stole his heart before I was able to make my move. But despite being upset, I accepted that he fell in love with you over me. You make him happy. But I haven't gotten over my crush on him yet, even with him married to you. So when I heard he was missing…"

Karina shook her head, "You aren't alone in this pain. You have Kaede and you have me. And the rest of us Heroes all are by your side for support."

It had been rough when Kaede came home to find her father missing, and Barnaby had a hard time getting her to attend her classes, but the girl refused to leave their apartment.

Barnaby said nothing, though he inwardly flinched at the mention of the girl's crush. Unlike Kotetsu, he was not oblivious. He knew Rose was having the hots for his husband, and he knew the extent to which she felt 'feeling' for the older man. But she was right - she had been respectful ever since they had gotten together, and while the two were never on exactly good terms, he was grateful to her.

Nodding, he sighed at the mention of his stepdaughter. Having to tell Kaede the truth about her father when she got home from her trip was the worst thing he ever had to do. Worse than Maverick, worse than seeing Kotetsu walk away with Barnaby's broken heart in his pocket after Schnieder let him go.

The look on her face... he'd never forget it as long as he lived.

He looked up at the screen and scowled.

"I hate it..." he admitted, speaking at last. "He did so much for Sternbild... and this is the treatment he gets."

Inwardly, he was cursing at himself.

_'If only I'd noticed this sooner... How people look upon him... Maybe then...'_

The girl reached out and pulled Barnaby into a hug, "We'll find him," she whispered, "We are all Heroes. We will bring him home."

Right as Barnaby was about to answer, however, the alarms in the building went off. All at the same time - fire, security, metal detectors... all ringing in everyone's ears.

She gasped, standing up, "What's that?" she frowned, "Are we under attack?" she, like the other heroes, looked down at their call bracelets, expecting a call that never came.

Instead, the strangest announcement rang out over the PA system. Loud, almost alluring Opera music. Loud enough to capture the attention of those who could hear, but soft enough to prevent the listener from becoming too enticed.

A strange and curious thing, indeed.

All the heroes stopped what they were doing.

The holoscreen above them flickered, static ringing out. Barnaby frowned, feeling dizzy and sick as his head spun and insides churned from the music. He knew this... this song playing out in a soft soprano opera.

It was one of his favorites.

Karina groaned, dropping to her knees, holding her head, "Something's not right about that sound…"

"I agree…" Ivan grabbed up a remote and tried to turn it off or—anything. Nothing seemed to work.

A voice, accented and thoroughly amused, echoed out over the speakers.

"Seems a lot of you seem to be trying to turn me off… when you should be turning me on—"

"-That time was on purpose." another, familiar yet oddly metallic voice that sent unnerving shivers down Barnaby's spine, interrupted.

"-And tuning in ~"

"Wait—what is this?" Nathan stepped closer to the screen, crossing his arms.

But Barnaby cut him off, walking briskly over to the television as if it held all the answers. That voice…he knew that voice better like the back of his hand. But... could it be...?

"Kotetsu...?" he breathed, sweat trickling down the side of his face from anxiety alone.

Another amused chuckle from the first voice answered him.

"Good guess, but no. Don't worry - you'll see the shitstain soon enough, my dear Barnaby~"

"Barnaby?" Pau-Lin frowned, recognizing the voice, though the accent was different. She glanced at Barnaby, then back at the screen, "I can't be the only one who hears another Barnaby."

Now that she mentioned it...

Barnaby snarled, glaring up at the screen. "Who are you?! Answer me!"

His shoes thudded against the floor as he ran up to the screen, slamming his hands against it,

"ANSWER ME!"

Silence persisted for a moment, before-

"I am you."

"Impossible, there is only one Handsome~" Nathan hummed, jutting his hip out as he shifted his weight. "Now, the rumored false Barnaby who spirited away our Wild Tiger on the other hand…"

From the speakers came a very small, weak groan.

"Kotetsu!" Barnaby gasped, pressing himself to the screen, as if trying to find a way to his husband. "Kotetsu, are you there?!"

"Fufufufufu~ How cute~" the voice giggled, followed by the sound of someone getting slapped. "Little 'Bunny' is getting all hyped up about his friend! Are the other dipshits the same? Foolish dogs of filth whining for their pack member? Not like he is, actually... more like-"

A clicking noise.

"-a mutt who wandered in from the gutters."

"Enough." Antonio grunted from the back of the group of gathered heroes, "Give us the visual. I know you are planning on it."

"Hm. As you so wish, oh great 'Hero'~"

The screen flickered, and slowly, the image of a suit clad Barnaby Brooks Jr. came into view. Seated at a chair, wine glass in hand, his legs crossed, and a charming look on his face.

"N-No way…" Blue Rose gasped, looking between the two Barnabys.

"I wasn't lying to you... well, I sort of am." the second Barnaby shrugged, tilting his head to the side as the light shone brighter, revealing his unusual white complexion and hair... and the bloody red hue of his lying eyes.

Behind him, another groan sounded as Kotetsu tried to awaken from his trance.

Barnaby snarled, losing his composure like a madman as he leapt at the screen, Antonio and Keith lunging forward to hold him back before he broke something or injured himself.

The door to the training room opened, Agnes storming in with an agitated voice ringing out over the music.

"What the hell is going on-"

She stopped, staring bewildered at the madness of Barnaby... and the second version sitting smugly behind the safety of the television screen.

"What... is this?"

"It just started happening—we think they have Kotetsu." Pao-Lin frowned.

On the other side of the screen, Malvolio smirked at the chaos slowly unfolding by his hand. Humans, they were such foolish creatures. To think that he'd been pinned as a 'copy' of them. Idiots; the lot.

"Oh I do. I have you blithering idiot. And I'm having _such a great time with him_."

He leered at the confused Heroes, Amaryllis slowly edging her way into view and easing herself into her brother's lap. Malvolio paid her little attention, though he did touch the small of her back and widen his grin at the now horrified original Blue Rose staring straight at them.

"This has not been approved by the sponsors! Where are these look-alikes coming from? This is all over the city!" Agnes demanded.

Again, a weak groan, only this time it was followed by words, "Not…what you think—genetic-enhance'd cl-clones…all of us—h-heroes…"

The imposter Barnaby groaned, rolling his eyes with an annoyed look as he turned his head to someone behind. "I thought I told you to shut up already! Annoying old man..."

Shaking his head, he turned to the White Rose, giving her an approving nod. She smiled at him, snuggling comfortably against his chest, the action of which made every single Hero in the room uncomfortable.

"Of course... brother dear."

As soon as she spoke, Kotetsu's groans halted.

For those watching the broadcast, a slight dizziness overtook them, leaving them swaying on their feet.

Watching them swoon, shiver and slip under their own two feet, Malvolio purred. "It's amazing, no? The power mere words can have over the human psyche."

He took a sip of his wine, offering the glass to his sister.

"I suppose you are remotely curious as to who I am? Well, my dear ladies and gentlemen of the American soil... the question is not so much who, as it is what am I?"

"Kotetsu just told us that!" Ivan insisted at the screen, "Geeze, and this guy calls us slow…"

"Yes, well I had a better explanation, but considering this idiot-"

He nodded to the shadowed figure behind the chair.

"-has a bigger mouth than an entire newscast team, I suppose the old fashion bluntness will have to do."

And then, just as he had with Kotetsu, he reached up and slowly pealed away the skin on his left cheek, revealing an internal skeleton of wires and machinery. Then he pulled out his knife, moving it to his other cheek, and making a small slice, blood oozing from the cut down his snowy skin.

"Barnaby…I think your double is a cyborg… How un-handsome." Nathan muttered.

Malvolio smirked.

"Correct - seems I don't have to drill it into your head like I did to him ."

Another gesture to behind his chair.

"Now... time to talk business..." He stroked Amaryllis's hair.

The group watching all tensed, getting a bad feeling of what was to come. And they were right to as they saw a large figure drag another out of the darkness behind the fake Barnaby and into view of the cameras.

Two of them. With a strong sense of the worst kind of nostalgia, two Kotetsus appeared. One overly large and paper white with obvious robotics adorning his body inside and out, and the other; a shock no one was prepared to see.

Malvolio's grin was too satisfied as Kotetsu was thrown at his feet, like some piece of meat to a rabid dog. Placing his foot on the injured man's back, he pressed into his wounds, slowly ripping the Hero from his spellbound trance. At the same time, he muted the sound of the Heroes on the television, and transferred their screen to the ones implanted in his eyes, the red orbs long since infused with microbes and fibers to create a personal, secret version of a scanner, computer and more. He could see them, could hear the Heroes on the other side. But Kotetsu no longer could.

Kotetsu cried out in pain as fresh blood stained the already stained and dirty formerly white lab coat that hardly provided him decent cover.

Seeing his husband for the first time in over a week, and in his current state, drove Barnaby over the edge. Wrestling his way free, hitting both Bison and Sky in the face with his flailing elbows, he ran up to the television screen and slammed up against it, aggressively banging on the surface.

"YOU BASTARD! YOU SICK SON OF A BITCH, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH HIM!?"

The veteran hero was more than a little roughed up. It was clear he'd been starved and dehydrated, beaten and abused—probably even tortured. But the look in his swollen eyes told Barnaby that his spirit hadn't been broken—yet.

Behind Barnaby, Karina turned away, covering her face, "Tiger…"

And it seemed Malvolio was hell bent on fixing that. Smirking, he nodded to his sister again, and this time, she started to hum and climb off his lap. Crawling down on her hands and knees, a bit delicately, she reached out and touched the inside of Kotetsu's leg.

Kotetsu couldn't help it. He couldn't lift his arms or legs, only his eyes widened and his lips gasped open as, to his horror, an erotic moan escaped his throat.

Karina snapped her head up, her eyes widening as she witnessed herself—only not herself—touch and rub up against the man of her dreams, coaxing sounds off pleasure from him.

Barnaby trembled, biting his lip hard enough in rage to make it bleed, his fists clenched too tight at the sight of his husband being manhandled and molested.

Knowing that Kotetsu could neither see nor hear the Heroes, Malvolio played it up. Feigning a gasp, he stared down wide eyed at the veteran in mock shock.

"Oh my God... have you no decency? Such a naughty boy... moaning like that in front of all your colleagues. Your partner, oh my... did he know what a little whore you were? He looks so hurt and angry that his dear senior buddy would be so shameless . How inconsiderate of you!"

Kotetsu could only let out another moan, his hips even twitching upwards as the girl's hand slid farther up under his lab coat. In his mind he was horrified at his body's reaction. It felt so wrong—too wrong. Like he was being unfaithful to both Barnaby and Tomoe. But the gentle, erotic touch was so different from the pain he'd been living with for so long…

Karina's fists creaked as she watched, feeling as if a shard of ice hit her heart. Forced to watch what could have been (excluding how beat up and starved Kotetsu looked). It was her one romantic dream—and she couldn't even be the one to make him moan out like that—respond to her like that. She felt her jealousy flair up and it flickered in her mind to blame Barnaby for this torture. It was his fault for stealing Kotetsu away! If the older hero had been with her then maybe he wouldn't be where he was now!

She couldn't help the glare she sent at Barnaby's back. And it didn't go unnoticed by Malvolio.

"Oh my... what's this? Miss Rose likes what she sees? Oh, how scandalous! You poor girl..."

He faked a sorrowful expression, not for her... but for the rest of the population who would most certainly be watching.

"Being wooed by a fool of a man... how cruel... and how disgusting..."

He threw Kotetsu a look.

"You all... you may be wondering what business I have with the Heroes. Well, I come here now to bring you nothing but the truth. The pain, the chaos you've felt... I know that feeling. The Heroes, they protect you. But they cannot 'save' you. They only save their own skin... humans save their own skin. I speak to you now, not as a cyborg... not a robot... not a human... but as a man who was just as betrayed and left behind, because the Heroes of this city, this country... they see me as nothing.

Amaryllis looked sadly at her brother's solemn face.

" We are nothing to them..."

He blinked, tapping into his database and pulling up old files for the whole city to see. From his birth, to his development, the pain and agony he and the rest of the clones endured. How Heroes, free rangers and those of other cities, came to infiltrate the laboratory where they rested... how they looked upon the clones with disgust. How they blew the building to shreds, sank it underground, and left them to die.

How he, Malvolio, was freed at last from his tank. How he worked hard to bring his siblings up from near death. His sister, wounded, and unable to speak. H-01, having nothing but his organs and brain left in tact. Some of them tearing away at their own faces in pain, in suffering.

Malvolio's voice held a sad, mournful note.

"You see? We did not ask to be born... we did not ask to be villains... yet because of what we are... who we are... because we are not 'like them', amored and glamoured up... we are tossed aside like garbage... and left to live in this dark, rotting place where we first breathed life into our synthetic lungs."

He glared down at Kotetsu again.

"And like us... you have been hurt and betrayed by your kind. This man..."

He kicked Kotetsu.

"Playing with the feelings of a young girl... bringing his young partner down and damning his fate...abandoning his daughter for the sake of his own selfish, inappropriate desires...a whore..."

He kicked Kotetsu again.

"A monster."

Malvolio's red eyes lifted back up to the camera, staring Sternbild square in the face.

"A thief who's done nothing but break your city, crush your dreams, and fail you without a thought to your feelings."

"Y-you're wrong!" Karina shouted, "Wild Tiger has given this city so much! He's sacrificed so much! He may be a lame dork, but his heart is bigger than anyone's! You pretend to understand him, but you don't! Not in the least! How dare you say such horrid things about him!"

Malvolio chuckled, taking another sip of wine.

"As you wish, Miss Rose."

He leaned over, whispering quietly into Kotetsu's ear.

"Your colleague tells me you are a 'lame dork' who's sacrificed too much of the city'~"

Kotetsu flinched, closing his eyes, "Shut—up." He gasped.

At that moment, the door to the gym burst open and Kaede rushed in, security hot on her tail.

"You aren't allowed down here!" they were shouting.

But she ignored them and ran straight to Barnaby, grabbing his red and white work out shirt, "What is this? Why—Dad—it's you but not and Dad's there—!"

Barnaby could not answer, and even if he could, he didn't know what to say. Instead, all he could do was protectively wrap his arms around the girl as Malvolio's eyes swiveled toward her.

The clone smirked.

"Oh my... your poor daughter... did you know she was watching this too? Such a little whore her Daddy is~"

"K-Kaede…" With that broken mutter, it finally happened. A flicker of a broken look in Kotetsu's honey-colored eyes.

"Dad—Dad! It's not true! I know it's not true! Don't give up! Barnaby—He'll save you! I know he will! He loves you! We—we're family!" The girl shivered, not wanting to imagine losing both her parents. Barnaby was a good step-father, but it wasn't the same as having her real dad trying to steal hugs…

"Oh god!" She gasped, remembering the last time he'd wanted a hug from her—just a simple hug and she denied him it. And if they didn't get Kotetsu back soon…

"Dad—I love you. Co-come back so I can give you that hug…"

But Kotetsu didn't seem to hear her as he gasped on, "Bunny…t-take care of her…please…"

"No! No, stop talking as if this is the end—Kotetsu!" Barnaby shouted, now hitting the screen beside Kaede.

"L-Love…you…both." Kotetsu coughed out.

"DAD!"

"Uh… should we escort her out?" the security guards asked and the Producer shook her head.

"She's his family. Let her stay. With this broadcast showing on every screen in the city she won't escape it and at least here she has support."

Malvolio grinned, sadistic and giddy, heart aching but his mind screaming _'YES_!'. This is what he lived for. This was what he was programmed to do. It was all he knew. He never knew anything else.

And so, he leaned down, whispering again.

"It's not just her... say hello to all of Sternbild, Kotetsu T. Kaburagi... Husband of Barnaby Brooks Jr.!"

He feigned another gasp.

"Oh! Was I not supposed to say that out loud? Oh my... how terrible..."

He looked into the camera.

"The city's veteran has forced the young Mr. Brooks to be his own! How awful, the poor boy! And what a secret... it was so hard to dig that up!"

"Liar…You…knew it—and you know I never for— _AHH_!" His body lurched and twitched in pain as sharp ice-like nails dug into his family jewels.

"Oh? Lying to the city now, aren't you?" Malvolio grinned at him. "Or are you saying you aren't aroused by a young girl's touch?"

Amaryllis scrapped up along his goods, slowly and cruelly.

Kotetsu's eyes nearly budged from the pain, his scream causing interference with the audio on the broadcast. "STOP! PLEASE STOP!"

"What? You've had enough?" Malvolio looked astonished. "Well then... I guess if you've given up so soon, I can always go for your husband and daugh-"

"Don't." Kotetsu's eyes flared up with anger and he struggled to, but was finally successful in moving one arm as he reached up to grab Malvolio's shirt collar, "You. _Dare_!"

Wrong move; Malvolio snarled, tightly grasping Kotetsu's wrist with a strong hand. Then, his ugly expression twisted back into a sadistic smiling face. He leaned in close.

"I wouldn't have done that, Mr. Kaburagi..."

And sent a shockwave of dark power through the man's body.

Once again, Kotetsu's scream broke into silence, his body twitching and writhing in pure agony. Tears streamed down his face and blood began to sputter onto his lips as he screamed.

The audience watched as even his single piece of clothing seemed to burn and fray off his body, leaving him naked, only the two scratched wedding bands left on his person, and his ring finger an angry red and swollen from burns caused by the two rings of silver and gold.

" _DAD! DAD NO! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? DADDY!_ " Kaede screeched.

Karina gasped and turned away, feeling sick to her stomach; the other heroes unable to watch, and Barnaby—

Barnaby actually getting sick, his worry for his husband too much for him to handle.

Malvolio threw Kotetsu down, turning back to the camera. "And now, that brings me to my next point..."

He snapped his fingers, and H-01 approached the camera again, this time holding a box.

"Thank you... H-01." Malvolio crooned, knowing how much the name of the biorobot would affect the Heroes watching.

"You bastard—" Barnaby hissed, his powers activating on their own without his awareness, "You _fucking_ bastard! He gripped the screen, causing it to crack and the image to flicker, "I'LL KILL YOU!"

H-01 looked into the camera, staring coldly at the Hero.

"Am I the bastard? Or you? For letting him-"

He nodded to Kotetsu.

"-Leave your arms again."

"All of you." Barnaby growled, "All of you for even touching my husband."

In the corner of the damaged screen, Kotetsu lay as motionless as the dead, and Kaede pushed her way in to look for any signs that he was breathing—that he was alive and that she had not lost her father, too…

"Oh, he's alive." Malvolio reassured her boredly. "I wouldn't let him die on my watch... he's too valuable to me."

"Now..." he lifted the lid of the box, tossing it aside before reaching in and pulling out a large, mechincal contraption. Wires to boxes, a timer sitting upon the surface, and buttons decorating the edges.

A bomb.

"This..." Malvolio crooned, stroking the surface, almost sadly. "Is what my creators left for me to do. This... is what I've been programed to do. It's not my choice..."

His eyes flickered.

"It's not my decision. But it is what I have been assigned... my reason for existence."

He shook his head.

"A week ago, I visited Sternbild... and in my visit, I hid several of these all around the bottom district of the city. And then the one above that. And the one above that. All over the place."

He fiddled with a wire.

"And by my hand, they will be set off."

Sensing an uproar, he spoke louder.

"HOWEVER."

He smiled.

"There is a way to prevent the 'inevitable'."

"Oh—this will be great for ratings!" Agnes nearly squealed, but when all the heroes turned a glare on her, she composed herself, "It's still horrible. Completely horrible. Poor Wild Tiger."

But Malvolio took the bait.

"Oh? Seems the people of Sternbild like what they see - something about 'the ratings are going up'. I also hear various cheers for me... wow... I had no idea you were that much disliked."

It wasn't a lie. Cheers from all over the city, for the villain of the hour, echoed in the cyborg's ears, much to his own surprise. And he accidently let it play in the small room for Kotetsu to hear.

Kotetsu's body flinched, his eyes shut tight.

"Just get to the point! The bombs!" one of the security guards in the room shouted.

Malvolio recomposed himself and waved the man off. "In due time, it's not of my importance now... Amaryllis."

He looked down at his sister,

"Would you bring Mr. Kaburagi here some water? He'll need his strength for what comes next~"

The White Rose nodded and brought over a pitcher of water, making a show of it as she kneeled down and cradled the man in her arms as she coaxed him to drink.

"He needs more than water, dear Brother." She said, once again drawing Kotetsu in as her puppet and making it easier to force the water into his dehydrated body, and cause the listeners to get dizzy.

"Of course, dear Sister." Malvolio cooed, motioning again for his manservant of a biorobot. "H-01... fetch us some bread."

"Stop, Dad! It's probably poisoned!" Kaede shouted, banging on the screen and causing the cracks to grow, though Barnaby's powers had extinguished.

Malvolio hummed, watching as H-01 returned to his side. Taking the few pieces of bread with a nod of thanks, he handed them to his sister, but not before practically shoving one down Kotetsu's throat, like a child trying to feed themselves.

Kotetsu choked, but was unable to do anything about the treatment.

Amaryllis looked up at the Kotetsu cyborg, "Be careful. This is a wounded animal. You will either kill it or make it bite you." She looked back down at Kotetsu, "I always wanted a cat. Brother?" she requested, but her cold tone revealed that it was not in a caring way that she wanted a pet.

"Of course, my darling." Malvolio cooed, gently taking his sister by the chin. "After all this... you can play with him before the final choice of the people is made. Remember-"

He looked off to the side, where his desk sat.

"-we are not those who can make our own choices."

To thank her brother, Amaryllis stretched to press a kiss to Malvolio's lips, letting it linger for seconds too long to be anything platonic. "My stray cat needs a bath, H-01."

In Malvolio ear, he could hear Barnaby scream and vomit in disgust and he smirked as H-01 picked up Kotetsu, kissing his sister again when the Hero's eyes passed over them. Knowing that deep down, it was breaking Kotetsu's heart... because he and Barnaby shared the same face.

Kotetsu whimpered as his clone-android scooped him up and he was carried out to be roughly bathed in cold water. H-01 even being cold enough to shave Kotetsu's beard and scruff completely off, removing his trademark.

* * *

To be continued…


	9. Chapter 9

Malvolio was still sitting in his chair when H-01 returned with the freshly 'cleaned' - used lightly to describe how raw poor Kotetsu had been scrubbed - Hero. Gently holding Amaryllis in his lap, dotting her face with delicate kisses and relishing in the disgusted noises he was hearing from the mortified Heroes, particularly those of whom they shared a face with. He smirked with his lips against her pale neck when his manservant unceremoniously dropped Kotetsu at his feet. Pulling away from his sister, a red welt left on her neck in wake of his actions and affection, he glanced down at his victim with sinister intent.

"Fetch him his suit. He'll be needing it."

Turning back to the camera, he crooned. "Ladies and gentlemen, I have an announcement. Your city can be saved..."

Kotetsu, no longer in his trance, covered himself, his nudity, though at this point nothing new, was still very uncomfortable, and now that he could move, he found his modesty more important that getting up to move. Though with one hand he mourned the loss of his facial hair. The lack of it making him look younger—but it didn't suit him at all, at least to those who knew him well. The beard had always been such a big feature of his.

Malvolio continued on, ignoring the man. "Through a good amount of thought, I have decided to be kind..."

He glanced down at Kotetsu.

"Yes, your city can be saved... but on one condition." As he pulled out large industrial style clippers and turning them over in his hands

Kotetsu looked up at him, and back at the Hero work out room, everyone held their breath.

 With a nod, Kotetsu's hand was grabbed and held up and still, Malvolio brought the clippers down to his ring finger before speaking again, "Wild Tiger must win in battle against all of us. One-on-one and back-to-back. If he wins, your city is safe... if he doesn't-"

Malvolio tutted and with two quick, loud snaps, two rings fell from Kotetsu's fingers, leaving his burned finger bare, and a cry of horror leaving his lips as he was robbed of the symbols of love and commitment. He tried to snatch them up but they were kicked away.

"-the bombs will go off one by one, with every loss he faces. He cannot advance if he loses to an opponent - only by defeating all of us, will he keep your city safe. The stakes are high - are you ready to let the fate of your world fall on the shoulders of this Hero here?"

He turned up the speakers to hear the voices of the city speak out.

The space around Kotetsu flooded with cries of doom and outrage. Not even one voice seemed to have faith in him.

A shadow fell across his eyes as he looked down. "I will protect Sternbild."

Malvolio watched him thoughtfully. "I heard you were the King of Heroes once in your life - was that true?"

Kotetsu felt another pang of hurt like the one he had felt the night he'd been taken—one for his dear Tomoe. "Once, yes…" His eyes drifted to the silver ring, broken upon the floor out of his reach.

"And?"

"And what?"

"How did you fall?"

"I didn't. I care about protecting the people of Sternbild, not titles." He looked up with a stern look upon his face, "I had strived for that title for my wife while she was sick. I wanted her to know I was doing it for her. I thought—I thought I could somehow save her from her illness if I could achieve the thing she always believed I could…"

"Wait... You actually believed that rising in power would save your wife from her inevitable death?" Malvolio raised an eyebrow. "That's... bloody stupid!"

"Not physically!" Kotetsu scowled, "Obviously you don't understand what true love is. I believed seeing my success would give her more strength to last longer as the doctors worked on making her better! She wanted me to be a hero—she told me to go and that she'd be fine once I saved the city that day—but she—" Kotetsu broke down, losing focus on the reason why he'd started talking about Tomoe.

Malvolio just started at him with wide eyes. "Humans... are strange animals...."

"I may not have the title of King of Heroes, but I am still a hero. I will do my best to protect this city and its people—even if they all hate me. She loved this city and I'll protect it for her—for my daughter—for my family and friends. I'll protect it for everyone."

"Same old Kotetsu…" Antonio couldn't help but smile, "Loyal to a fault…" he turned away from the cracked screen, "He should save himself this time. We can find these bombs." He whispered the last line to Keith so that the fake Barnaby wouldn't be able to hear it.

"I heard that, you old cow."

"Old cow?" Antonio's eye twitched, "Well listen to this, Pretty-boy, If you are so positive your bombs can't be found, you wouldn't mind a little sporting chance on our ends while Kotetsu fights—because we all know he will if it means saving the city. If you hid them as well as you think you did, you would have no problem with allowing us heroes to search along with the police who are already on the task."

"Oh, go ahead." Malvolio commented boredly. "But they'll go off the moment you come within five feet of them, let alone touch them. Oh, and don't try to evacuate. I have bombs lining all routs in and out of Sternbild and I will set them off."

The heroes froze, "It's a bluff." Keith said.

"You are welcome to test it out. It isn't my loss." the White Rabbit shrugged.

Don't—risk it!" Kotetsu insisted, "You have no idea what these people are capable of.

"You shouldn't have to do it alone!" Karina cried out, "Not something this huge!"

"Listen to the Hero, little girl." Malvolio taunted. "There's nothing you can do. This is for him to do alone -"

"All of us protect Sternbild!" Karina hissed. "Not Just Wild Tiger! Why him? Why take him?!"

As she spoke a small shadow waddled onto the screen followed by a boy looking to be three years in age. He grinned and reached up as he approached Malvolio, "Up, Daddy, Up!"

For the first time, something akin to a genuine smile broke out on Malvolio's face. He reached down, a bit awkwardly with Amaryllis sitting on his lap, and lifted up the boy to set him in the girl's awaiting arms.

"Daddy," the little boy who supported spiky white hair pointed at Kotetsu, "two H-01s!"

"That's right, Ryan!" Malvolio cooed, kissing the top of the boy's head.

The boy grinned and wiggled happily at the praise, "I make dem fall down?"

"In time." Malvolio chuckled, ruffling his hair and turning his attention back to the camera. "And that is all for tonight! We will be back tomorrow morning for the first fight of the day."

He leered at the people of Sternbild.

"Stay tuned."

And then the screens went black.

 

* * *

The room was as silent as the dead for a long while after the broadcast ended. The heroes' eyes all still locked upon the cracked screen.

"What do we do..?" Kaede was the first to break the silence as she gripped Barnaby's arm, "We can't let him do this to my dad!"

"Doesn't matter, there is not much we can do for him." Nathan shook his head, "I'm sorry Little Tiger, but we don't know where they are, not even a hint. There were no clues in what we could see."

"And the broadcast was untraceable. Believe me, I tried. I had my best people on the case when it first started." Agnes sighed, resting her cheek on her hand, "That man did some damage to Hero TV's reputation, though…"

Barnaby said nothing, staring long and hard at the screen with a torn expression. Part of him was feeling defeat, like the enemy had already won. It was that same feeling he'd felt years ago, with Jake. Only back then, Kotetsu had been around to help push him back up to his feet.

Now, his husband lay deep in the palms of Ouroboros' monsters, and there was nothing Barnaby could do. That's where the other half of him, ignoring the people of his city and the orders put in place to keep him tied down, was ready to grab his suit and fly off to his husband's rescue.

And on top of it all, his _and_ Tomoe's ring had been stripped off Kotetsu's finger; their marriages disrespected.

"Barnaby." Agnes touches his shoulder, "I think we have to go public about your marriage. I'll call a press conference and would like you to speak at it…You too, little daughter of Wild Tiger. You'll want to have your say officially on the accusations made about your father." She said, pulling out her phone and dialing.

Barnaby looked like he was about to refuse, but as he opened his mouth, the memory of hearing the people put his husband down came to mind and he closed it and put on a scowl. No, now was the time to set things straight. Kotetsu was not someone he was ashamed off. He loved him. He had nothing to hide.

Glancing down at their daughter, he knelt down and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Dad will be okay, right?" She asked, hugging him tight, "He'll come back to us?"

Barnaby could only nod, stroking her hair in comfort.

She let out a shaky breath.

Agnes snapped her phone shut, "The press will be arriving shortly. Let's get you two ready for the cameras. As for the rest of you—try to find those bombs, but be careful in case they do go off as he said!"

Barnaby carefully rose to his feet, feeling weaker than he'd ever felt in his lifetime. So small, helpless...it was as if he was four years old again. Lost, confused, and asking questions that could not be answered...

Helpless to do anything at all.

Sensing his plight, Kaede took his hand, "We do this together." She whispered, knowing that he'd suffered losses in his past similar to the loss she and her father had suffered. "I'm your family now. You aren't alone."

Barnaby could only nod, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze as Agnes led them from the room.

After the two were cleaned up to Agnes' standards, they were shown out to the press conference where reporters were all crammed in, demanding answers.

Kaede, unused to such a crowd, hesitated and froze, her eyes wide.

Barnaby took notice and gave her a small smile, wrapping an arm around her waist as he gently led her over. "You don't have to speak if you don't want to-"

Swallowing, she gave a little nod.

Agnes smiled at them and turned to the press, "And without further ado, Barnaby Brooks Jr." she stepped aside, holding her arm out in presentation so that Barnaby could take the stand and face the flood of questions.

"Mister Brooks!"

"Barnaby!"

"Is it true that—"

"What they are saying—"

"Is Wild Tiger—"

"What is your true relat—"

"Is this all a hoax to up ratings for—"

The questions were shot out at him quickly, overlapping each other and causing a loud mumble of voices where he could only pick out parts of some things being said.

Hearing all of the question fly at him at once drove a sharp pain through Barnaby's brain. Sighing, slightly annoyed, he didn't say a word at first and instead held up his hand to display his wedding ring.

The members of the press all silenced themselves, all realizing that Barnaby would not answer questions until after his statement.

Finally, after moments of silence and anticipation, Barnaby broke the ice.

"This is my wedding ring." he announced, loud and clear for the crowd to hear. "It marks my bond, my love, and my commitment to the one I love."

He swallowed, keeping his composure.

"I know the city has questions - and I must confess, I have not been completely honest. Yes, I am married. But a wife, I have none."

He watched the light of the setting sun dance across his ring. A ring of whicch it's match lay broken and out of his husband's reach.

"This ring marks the marriage to my husband. My husband Kotetsu T. Kaburagi."

A ripple of mutterings took the press.

"So they were correct? Wild Tiger did force yo—"

"Don't even finish that!" Kaede cut in, slipping out to stand next to her step-father rather than behind him. Her brows furrowed and she set a strong glare upon the press, "I am the daughter of Wild Tiger—Barnaby is my step-father through this marriage."

She took a deep breath, "My mother's death when I was really little had hit my father very hard, and he lived for years alone with his pain. He never once thought about dating again—Until Barnaby. And even that wasn't a sudden development. It was Barnaby who helped him feel ready to move on after he lost my mother, and for the first time in as far as I could remember—Barnaby made my dad happy again. His smiles were from the heart again. And then Barnaby came to me after their relationship had advanced for two years—he asked me if it was alright to ask my dad for his hand. It was Barnaby who proposed and expressed the first interest in getting married, so there are no grounds to even suggest that my dad had forced Barnaby! Heck, my dad didn't even know he was into guys before Barnaby asked him out!"

She took a calming breath and crossed her arms, "Stop trying to make my dad look like the bad guy—He's a hero, not a villain!"

"Is she serious?"

"I believe she's merely acting on the fact that her father forc-"

"ENOUGH!" Barnaby's voice echoed out over the expanse of the room, the fire in his eyes blazing raging heat. "Enough! Kotetsu did NOT force me into a marriage. You heard from my daughter, you will here it from me - I AM THE ONE WHO ASKED HIM TO MARRY ME! And here you are-"

He glared at every single person, every single face staring at him.

"-treating him as if he's nothing but garbage. Like a bug or a dead animal. Something horrible and rotten. When he's done nothing but work his fucking ass off to defend the city."

The cold note in Barnaby's voice, so calm yet so full of anger and disgust, send shivers down the spines of even the most bold of reporters.

"Kotetsu was once the King of Heroes. You revered him, looked up to him. But since then... nowadays... you'd rather cast him into the pit of Hell and stab him in the back repeatedly despite everything he's done for you. And for what reason ? Because he's low on the points? The rating? Does it really fucking matter that much to you that you would bring down the only human being who has ever given a damn about your sorry asses in this city? Well? "

His glare darkened.

"I never noticed it before... how poorly this country treats honest men like him. It's disgusting. You should be ashamed of yourselves. I love Kotetsu. I will say over and over again, because what do I have to hide? Why should I hide it? My husband is nothing to be ashamed of. I'm proud of him. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be the person I am today. He's done so much, selfless care for everyone - good or bad - and I am so proud of him."

He turned, taking Kaede's hand.

"I'm done here. Come, Kaede."

"But isn't it also true…" shouted one reporter lost in the sea of cameras and note books, "…that he is the reason your own powers are on the decline?"

Barnaby's eye twitched. He'd had enough of the stupid rumors and petty fan base tearing his husband apart. "You know what? My power loss was from _my_ own doing, not Kotetsu's. I choose to be a Hero; I choose the road with the fucking consequences. And to be realistic, my loss of power is something my husband also suffered, therefore I would pinpoint that this is most likely a _fucking_ unique thing to a certain group of _fucking_ NEXT powers. So if you don't mind-"

He pulled Kaede closer to him.

"I'll be taking my leave."

And with that he turned away. However, just before he stepped his way through the crowd to safety, he heard someone retort a very insulting statement about him, his husband and the Heroes. Forcing a smile, he turned to the man, and spoke.

"I have only one answer for you-"

And, to the shock of the crowd, and Agnes' rage about what it'd do to her ratings, flashed his middle finger.

"See ya!"

And saluted his way out the door.

Kaede leaned against Barnaby, her eyes, sparkling with anger, downcast. "How could they? They saw my dad being tortured and humiliated live and they choose to take that—that— _synthetic dick's_ lies as truth?! _Uhhhhhhhrrrrrrrrrrg_!" with a growl of frustration she pulled back and paced the room, her hands gripping her hair.

Barnaby watched her silently, equally as angry. How could they think that about Kotetsu?

"I guess…they only supported him when it was convenient for them…" She muttered sadly. Then she shook her head and looked back up at Barnaby, "I want to help save him!"

"As do I." Barnaby agreed, wrapping his arms around her comfortingly.

* * *

To be continued…


	10. Chapter 10

Kotetsu found himself being toughly stuffed into his own hero suit by H-01 who treated him as a doll being squeezed into tight clothes that didn't quite suit the doll's stiff arms and legs. Then he was brought into a battle chamber—or what he assumed was one—and left there, alone for an hour.

Finally the sound of footsteps broke the silence inside the old, withered coliseum. "All set up, Mr. Tiger?" Malvolio's voice echoed out from somewhere high above. "I know your cityfolk are - seems your husband pulled quite a rude stunt with the press last night. Hasn't helped your odds, but I hear a couple of cheers. Its amazing what giving the middle finger to a reporter can do."

That brought a little smile to Kotetsu's face. Always a little spitfire when angered: his Barnaby. "If you think that was something, you should meet him. I'm sure he'll show you the full force of what he can be like when angered. Though I doubt he'd be as forgiving with you as he is when I mess something up."

Malvolio snorted. "Idiot, I was crafted after him. I share his DNA. I know his past, present, what his habits are. How he acts. Hard to forget when your creator hammers it into your brain nonstop everyday for years, over and over again."

"Then I say you don't know much of anything. Barnaby's changed. He's grown. And there is so much more to him than what the public or Maverick had ever known." Kotetsu looked up, eyes searching for where the clone could be hiding, "However, I am sure you would know how obsessive he can become with the idea of revenge. First with the man who killed his parents—and now with the man who took his husband. I'd watch your back if I were you, _Thumper_."

A short burst of dark matter sprang down from the sky like a streak of lightning, barely missing Kotetsu by an inch and hitting the ground with a loud crack.

"I'd suggest you'd do the same, _pussy_."

"The name is Wild Tiger, you counterfeit hairball!"

"Yeah, a wild dumbass. And counterfeiting is something you do with money, you moron. Last I checked, I was made of cells and microchips, not dollar bills or those little coins you probably shove up your tight asshole - when your husband isn't already up their clogging it like a drainpipe."

"Counterfeiting applies to more than money, Idiot!" Kotetsu shouted, raising a fist.

"Oh, so like that tiny thing you call a penis?"

"At least I have one! You are probably as smooth as a Ken doll! After all, bootleg goods are always lacking in details."

"Oh really?" Malvolio cooed, just as a loud, wet squelching noise echoed through out the stadium. "Then pray tell, how would I be to enjoy my sister's skills?"

He let out a blissful sigh, purring in contentment.

A large hologram flickered in the center of the battle arena, showing the smug clone sitting in his chair contentedly, his cheek resting on his knuckles as his other hand was tightly tangled within the long white locks of the clone of Blue Rose. She knelt between his legs, her head bobbing along a long, thick sex.

Her white lips slid over the length over and over, her tongue darting out to lick around it when she reached the slightly pink head of the arousal. It was quite obvious that she had been at it for a while as drool and precum dribbled down her chin and seemed to form a decent little puddle on her knees.

The audio seemed to increase then, the sound of her hums and moans echoing off the walls around Kotetsu.

Kotetsu's eyes widened in shock. His words had just been in jest to distract the man enough that maybe he'd make a mistake—he would have never expected to be shown such a thing.

Amaryllis let out a long, loud lustful moan, scraping her teeth along her brother's member as she reached her hand into her own clothes and began to finger herself.

Eyes half lidded with contentment, Malvolio let out a smirk at the horrified look on Kotetsu's face. "What's the matter, Old Man? Been too long since you've felt a woman's touch? Miss it?"

"Only the touch of my wife. I am simply shocked you would show such a thing. First off-she's your sister, right? Siblings don't do that kind of thing! And secondly—keep that stuff in private!"

"Why should I?"

"Because it's socially unacceptable to do that thing in front of others!"

"... And do I look like I care?"

As the white rabbit spoke, his white rose pulled back and stood up, her clothes falling from her body as she turned around and lowered herself onto his awaiting cock with a long moan, that sent a dizziness through Kotetsu's mind, making him sway. Then she started moving, taking her brother's fingers into her mouth to gag her vocal noises of pleasure. Her hair bounced around her hips as she sped up her movements and leaned forward so she could take him in deeper.

Kotetsu had to look away and close his eyes, wishing he could also drown out the sounds of wet slapping.

"Oh yesssss." Malvolio groaned, raising his hips to collide with Amaryllis's underside, buckling and thrashing like a wild horse in a rodeo. Seeing Kotetsu turn away, he grinned, ready to further the rub of salt in the man's wounds. "Yes... please me, Rose. I want you... I want only you!"

It got to him. Kotetsu knew it wasn't his Bunny or the real Karina, but Malvolio had stripped away his accent like he had the night Kotetsu mistook him for Barnaby, and hearing Barnaby's sweet voice moaning out another's name…

He raised his hands, wanting and trying to cup his ears, but his helmet blocked him from being able to block it out, and he began to shake. "Bunny wouldn't cheat…" he muttered to himself.

Malvolio's moans got louder, more clear and penetrating. Holding his sister close, his red eyes gleaming, he smirked and tapped into his internal hard drive, bringing up behind the screen in his eyes a photo manipulation program.

And got to work on automatically editing the live recording Kotetsu was seeing.

Slowly, white hair bled to blondes, white skin gaining hues of peaches and tans, red eyes changed to more natural greens and blues…

Kotetsu trembled visibly, "I know what you are trying to do—and it wont work! You aren't Barnaby!"

And yet—they looked good together. Fitting together perfectly as Kotetsu had once fit with Tomoe. What if Barnaby got tired of waiting for him to come home? What if he decided to move on and forget him?

As if on cue, Malvolio moaned in that sickly sweet voice, "So young... so vibrant... Something new and unused...Something perfect. Not washed up. Not incompetent. Listens... You listen well Rose. My lovely Rose, my flower, my Queen!"

He stroked along the side of her breast, playing with it almost curiously.

"These... I like these better... than something old and fading. Something worn out."

The girl then let out another moan, knowing exactly what he was doing, "Barnabyyy~" her voice sang out like the sweetest of melodies.

Kotetsu fell to his knees and ripped off his helmet, tossing it to the side so that he could finally press his hands to his ears.

"K-Karina~" Malvolio sang, deciding to play the asshole and shooting off another short zap of dark matter into the sky, watching it slowly descend down into the coliseum like a meteor.

It hit its target, Kotetsu unknowing that it was coming due to trying to block out the sexual activities being shown to him. The burst of pain was short, but every bit as painful as the longer ones he'd endured before. Screaming, the image and voices of Barnaby and Karina together in that way seemed to burn into his mind with the pain.

Kotetsu cried out long after the pain had faded.

Malvolio's laughter rang in his ears, the White Rabbit letting out a roar of pleasure as his and his flower's activities came to a standstill, screaming her name out for Kotetsu's to hear and suffer from.

Kotetsu wasn't the only witness, the second broadcast had already begun and the entire city was tuned in, unable to avoid it as it displayed upon every screen, even phones. Parents desperately covered the eyes and ears of their children in horror.

Karina stood frozen in disgust as her identity was reveled in such a way. Her hand clasped over blue lips in dismay as she watched herself sexually pleasure Barnaby. She felt sick, and had completely forgotten the task assigned to her.

"THAT SON OF A BITCH!"

She wasn't the only one horrified by the display, Malvolio's stunt being the straw that broke the camel's back for Barnaby. Barely held back by Sky High and Rock Bison, Barnaby snarled and withered like a feral animal, seeing red as his clone continue to pleasure himself at the expense of Kotetsu's swiftly disintegrating self-esteem.

"LET ME GO! FUCK! I'LL KILL! YOU HEAR ME, BASTARD?! I'LL KILL YOU!"

Kotetsu was breathing hard, clutching his hair tightly in both fists as he tried to forget but couldn't. Worse – this was worse than if they had truly raped him rather than just feel him up as they had. He didn't even notice when large doors creaked open and his first opponent stepped out to face him.

"And good morning, citizens of Sternbild!" Malvolio cheerfully greeted, H-01 slipping out from the shadows to remove the exhausted Amaryllis from his lap as he fixed himself back up. The edits he'd done to the live broadcast slowly faded, revealing his white face and red eyes to the crowds watching below his throne. The King smiled, teeth bared and polished.

"I hope you are all enjoying yourselves. I am pleased to announce the first fight of the day, right now in the old Coliseum of the Gods."

He licked his lips.

"After my freedom, I discovered an array of history books locked away in the confines of my creators' desks. And inside their pages, I learned of the warriors and heroes of ancient history. Battles fought and won, when brawn against brawn was a real sport, and the odds were all down to chance. Not like what you have been dished out today. A television show staged with 'points' and 'ranks'. Pah... that is not real competition. When I learned of what has become of your ancestors' treasured Olympics, my heart broke."

He put on a despairing look.

"You poor people," he crooned softly, touching the place where his heart was (sort of), "censored of what real Heroism and competition is! Well, when I learned, I knew I had to do something about it. So I searched and searched and I found this !"

He extended his arms as if to embrace the entire vicinity of the ancient Stadium.

"The home of the gladiators! So, my dear viewers - prepare yourselves for the most riveting show of your lives! It's something to die for~"

"Dad…Dad, get up…." Kaede gasped, finally uncovering her eyes when she heard the tone of everything change in the broadcast, finding her father unmoving on the screen with a shadow approaching him.

"Hello there, handsome." a familiar voice purred, the air around Kotetsu suddenly getting stifling hot and sticky, almost enough to make his skin and amour melt.

Kotetsu gasped, his eyes moving up to look at the pure white version of Nathan.

"Oh no…" Kotetsu pushed himself to his feet and turned to get as much distance between them as possible. Not that it'd matter much. Fire was unpredictable, as were the rest of this clone's advanced NEXT powers. He was thankful for stumbling across that journal.

Once further away, Kotetsu allowed himself a good luck at his opponent, trying not to let what he'd just had engraved within his mind distract him. This Nathan, while having the clone signature of paper white skin and blood eyes seemed to have a reddish-pink color in his short hair. And yet his eyes, blood rest like the rest of them, held the same glint of insanity and malice that seemed to resonate in almost every single clone (the dog was an exception). Grinning, a scar on his lips stretching open to reveal wires and metal poking out from the inside of his face, he sashayed his way over to Kotetsu, Jutting his hip out just like the original.

Scanning Kotetsu up and down, he licked his lips, the scanners in his eyes telling him all he needed to know. His sweet expression became almost too sickly and honey-like.

"Now, Tiger~" he purred, watching Kotetsu's every move behind a façade of indifference. "Honey, why so scared? Why so afraid of us?"

"Oh….no…." Elsewhere, Fire Emblem shook his head with a pained sigh, "Darling other-me, that is not a good look for us."

"The way your clone presents himself is not the issue here!" Ivan insisted, "He'll burn Wild Tiger to a burnt crisp!"

On the screen, Kotetsu insisted upon keeping his distance, "I know your powers, and I know they go much farther and more deadly than simple flames. I would be a fool to keep this a close combat."

The clone's expression seemed less friendly, less innocent or sweet. It looked ghastly, almost as if he was trying to keep his emotions in check. The line was a thin one, and Kotetsu was clearly tight roping it.

"I don't suppose... you know exactly what I do?"

"You let out a toxic smoke that can melt rock. I'm not taking my chances too close to the source." Kotetsu responded.

"What the hell?" Antonio raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "Is he being serious or joking?"

"I've seen the notes your creators left. I'm not ignorant enough to think I'm basically fighting my fellow Heroes. None of you are the same. At least, not after they forced your NEXT powers to mutate from their original form." Kotetsu continued.

"Well now that's a bit rude." Nathan's clone smiled through gritted teeth, and the air suddenly got hot again. A rumbling sound occurred, the air whining softly as if in protest to the sudden heat. Around the two of them, the rocks shivered in anticipation, as hot air rose up and touched their formerly cool surfaces, condensation sweat dripping down their polished faces.

And below Kotetsu, the ground seemed to start softening.

"You dare call us mutants ?"

"N-no! I said your powers were mutated through experiments and things like that—not you yourself! Ah! Hot, hot, hot!" Kotetsu danced, hoping his suit's shoes wouldn't melt as he felt heat seeping through them.

His distraction proved his fatal mistake, as smoke started to surround the area, the heat intensifying.

On the ground, Kotetsu's discarded mask began to deform and melt, the suit on his body losing its shine.

"Saito's not going to be happy…" Kotetsu muttered to himself as he backed up more, trying to touch the ground as little as possible—which only made him run funny and didn't actually save his feet from the heat. A plan—he needed a plan. He was a close-range fighter and at quite the disadvantage as he was unable to get in close. He began to scan his surroundings, looking for anything that would help him.

A small yip echoed from the other side of the stadium. The camera panned for the viewers in Sternbild, to the old steps and seats. There, though too shadowed for the camera to fully pick up, was something familiar only to Kotetsu scurrying around the rocks, panting heavily from the heat but too curious about the outside to retreat to the cool safety of the underground.

Kotetsu gasped and changed directions, intending to skirt around the field to the large wolf-like dog. "Out! You'll get hurt again!"

Hearing his voice, the dog's ear flicked, and he lifted his head to see Kotetsu racing towards him. Yet, instead of running, he gave a happy bark and ran to the edge to the steps, overlooking the man with his tail wagging furiously and hook tapping against the cracked stone.

Gritting his teeth as he realized that the Ivan clone wasn't going to listen, he used the tether line on his suit to swing himself over and grab the dog, dropping him off at the doors, "Go, it's not safe—please." He said, petting the dog's head.

The white dog tilted his head to the side, letting out a confused whine.

"What's Mr. Wild doing?" Keith frowned.

"Go, please. I'll be alright this time." Kotetsu smiled at the dog.

The dog jumped up and rested his paw and hook on Kotetsu's chestplate, whining and licking his face in worry before running off into the darkness.

"Good boy." Kotetsu muttered before turning back to his opponent, surprised he hadn't already been engulfed in the toxic smoke during his distraction – which was literally an inch away from his face, the plume covering the entire battle field as the doors slammed shut behind him. Nathan's clone giggled from somewhere in the dark, smoldering fog.

"How nice - you befriended a piece of _garbage_." he crooned, spitting out the words 'garbage' as if the mere mention of the dog's presence was a turn off.

"No, I befriended an innocent and caring soul." Kotetsu shot back as he backed up, his eyes searching again for something to aid him in the fight so that he could use his meager remnants of power at a key moment when it presented itself.

"What is your deal with him, anyway? You call him garbage, and H-01 shot him! Maybe he would have been more loyal to the rest of you if you had all treated him better!"

"'It'." the fire user snorted. "That 'thing' has no right to exist. We tried to work with it, but as you can see, it's regressed to nothing but a dumb animal. If you must know... it was our creator's one failure. They tried to scrap it, you know - dispose of it after they discovered that its dog DNA backfired. The killing instincts of a wolf, they figured. It would make it unstoppable, ruthless and more valuable. Instead, it came out a domestic pet whose 'human' personality mixed with its canine instincts. It can't talk, only repeat things its heard. Its brain it the biggest mess - instead of a human brain, they got a screwed up hybrid of both dog and human.

"And it's power - I don't think I have to explain the fuck up there. Too bad they didn't realize it until it was too late - stupid thing learned only how to use its hook. Saved us the trouble. Though had they realized and offed that thing sooner, we could have used the scrap they used to repair his body, as they did with us."

"He," Kotetsu gestured to the doors, "is only a child!"

"It is an abomination - as are you, it seems. You don't seem to get much of the popular vote, do you?"

"It's not about popularity." Kotetsu shrugged, his back now pressed firm against the doors that blocked his path to a safer location, "And being less popular doesn't make me an abomination."

And then he spotted it. Or, at least what he hoped would give him more of an upper hand. A fire extinguisher attached to the wall some feet away. He made a run for it, the armor on his side facing the toxins starting to melt and drip to the now soft floor which did the same to the bottoms of his feet. He could feel the heat getting closer to touching the already blistered and torn flesh of his feet.

"No, but your idiocy does." the clone commented dryly, as a large smokebomb came whirling out of the smoke, straight at Kotetsu without any warning. "I can see your every move, Tiger. I live in the smoke - it is my cloak, my shadow. And from it, I am invisible."

Reaching out, Kotetsu grabbed his goal and had a very quick and important decision to make on where to use it. The smoke itself seemed pointless as it lacked actual flames, and he couldn't get to his opponent. So, he turned it on himself, taking a deep bath to hold it as he doused himself in the contents of the extinguisher just as the smoke bomb engulfed him.

It worked.

No burning, no melting—but for how long? He had to move quickly and so he started to the center of the room, waiting to hear Smoke Emblem (as he decided to call this clone) move or speak, the extinguisher still in hand.

"Coming to face Death like a man - I like that in a target." the clone purred, readying another smoke ball in his hands, skin glowing an iron hot red.

"Got you." Kotetsu smirked, turning to the voice and activating his powers for the added speed. He appeared as a glowing streak of blue as he rushed his opponent and raised his weapon, spraying some of the fire extinguisher at the clone, getting his face to at least temporarily blind him. He then emptied the rest onto himself quickly and made his attack before his one minute was up; punching the clone hard in the gut.

The clone shrieked, clutching at his face in agony as the chemicals burned into his skin and eyes. He snarled; ready to retaliate, when Kotetsu's fist hit him in the gut, sending him flying and the smoke clearing, temperature dropping slightly in the area behind the winded clone.

Kotetsu didn't let up, chasing after him, locked onto his target, ironically enough, like a machine and tackling him to the ground. Straddling him as his power reached it's limit, he continued to throw punches, aiming to knock the clone out.

His temper pushed over the edge, the clone snarled, catching one of Kotetsu's fists in his hand and letting his heat sear through.

Kotetsu cried out, but he didn't let up, finally having the upper hand. He twisted his body slightly and brought his armored elbow into the clone's temple. "It's time for you to hibernate, Smoky Bear!" Kotetsu hissed. It was obvious he was in pain, but he had to win—for the city and his family's sakes.

The clone was failing, and it showed on his face. But he wasn't giving in without a fight, and as a final strike, he blasted Kotetsu with a heap of hot smoke before passing out, the chemicals and damages to his organic and metal body taking their toll.

The heat got to the hero through his protective layer of cooling chemicals and angry red blisters appeared on his exposed skin, his armor finally fully melting away completely in some areas.

On his hands and knees, Kotetsu panted, gathering himself before he spoke, "Done… It's over, Bootleg! Let the city go!"

Malvolio stared down at the battle field, his expression unreadable. Tutting, he tapped his fingers on the edge of his seat, waiting for the smoke to disperse before speaking.

"Over? We've barely gotten started."

"You said it'd be over if I won! I won. He won't be burning up anything for quite a while!" Kotetsu shouted.

"Won the entire tournament, dumbass. That includes beating every. single. one. of. us" Malvolio snapped, glaring down at the Hero. "He was just one. There are seven more to go. But, if you insist on giving up so early-"

"Don't you dare set off those bombs!"

"Then I suggest you keep going." Malvolio sneered.

Kotetsu grit his teeth. He was in so much pain from the burns—he actually probably needed a doctor because of his burns.

"Round two will begin in an hour." Malvolio continued. "You have time to... prepare yourself for it."

And with that the screen flickered off and the doors to the coliseum opened.

"Only an hour?" Kaede gasped, "But Dad needs a doctor after all that! Those burns are serious looking! Can't we do anything, Barnaby?"

There was no answer. In fact, there was no sign of the blond Hero at all in the room but for a closing door.

"Barnaby!" She chased after him and reached out to grab his hand, a determined look on her face. "We have to save him. We have to! No more waiting—I can't watch anymore!"

"No." Barnaby's sharp tone cut her off. "I'm going. You stay here. It's far too dangerous out there. Stay-"

"I'm not a helpless little girl!" She nearly screamed, tears dotting her cheeks, "I have NEXT powers too—and I'm my father's daughter! You need a partner; I can be that partner until Dad is back safe!"

"NO!" Barnaby shouted, whipping around to face her. "That place is a complete death trap! If I take you there, I risk losing you - I won't let that happen to you. Your father - he's doing his best, but you've seen them. Those monsters - they aren't normal NEXT. Even I barely stand a chance - but I need to get Kotetsu out. I don't... I can't put you through that danger. Kaede, I'm sorry... Please forgive me."

And with that, he pulled away, aiming to walk down the hall to grab his suit and begin planning his rescue of Kotetsu.

"And what about you?" Kaede pursued, "If something happens to you, too then I won't have any parents. I lost my mother, I might lose my father—Would you risk me losing my step-father, too? I'm still young—I could end up like how you used to be. Another Orphan set on revenge—you know I would. At least if I go I can—"

"Kaede," Barnaby sighed, "please... I can't lose you."

"I'll be careful and listen to what you tell me—please…Dad?" she cried, her heart thumping hard within her chest. It hurt—it hurt so much being helpless and left behind when her father was slowly being killed publicly.

"... I'm sorry, Kaede." Barnaby shook his head, turning back to briefly kiss the top of her head before heading off.

Left behind, the girl fell to her knees, "I—I can do it… I'm not trained but…I can help…"

And yet, through the silence of the hallway, a voice seemed to whisper out to her, calling her name from the shadows. The girl looked up, frowning. "Hello? Is someone there?"

At first, silence was all that greeted her. But then, peeking out from around the corner of the hall, a short tiny man of a scientist nodded his head her way.

"Hello, did you say something?" She asked, pushing herself up and walking over to him.

His mouth moved, but the sound was too soft to hear.

"I'm sorry, could you please speak louder? I can't hear you—there is no need to be shy, I won't bite."

But instead, the man shook his head, beckoning her to follow him before pulling away around the corner.

Kaede looked back over her shoulder to the direction Barnaby had gone before she let her curiosity take over and follow the quiet man.

He led her over to the elevators, waiting until she reached his side before summoning one with the touch of a button.

"…You do work here, right? She asked, hands clasped behind her back.

He did not answer her, waiting until the elevator arrived before stepping inside and glancing expectantly at her to follow.

"….Okay, but no funny business or I'm calling my step-dad!" she sighed, stepping onto the lift with him, arms crossed.

The doors on the elevator closed and with a push of a button, they ascended. Once the doors opened again, Kaede followed the man down the hall and to a lab with a gold plaque next to the door over an electronic lock. "Saito… Are you Doc Saito? My dad has mentioned you." She said as he pulled out his work ID card and used it to unlock his lab door.

He nodded without sparing a glance her way, waiting until the door opened before moving again, this time into the safety of his lab. There, he disappeared for a moment, leaving Kaede all alone in her curiosity.

The girl looked around, spotting the pair of her father and step-father's original matching suits on display. She approached, reaching out to touch her father's. "Daddy…I'm sorry…"

"Hey, be careful with that!" a sudden, loud voice boomed.

She jumped, startled and spinning around, "I—I'm sorry, I just…"

The voice tutted. "Just like your father, always doing without thinking."

The girl blushed and crossed her arms, becoming defensive, "I was being careful! Besides, my dad has done more damage to that thing than I ever could simply by touching it!"

"True." the voice hummed in thought. A door opened somewhere off the side, footsteps echoing over the tiled floor before Saito reappeared to the girl.

Kaede looked at him, letting her arms fall back to her sides, "Why did you bring me here?" She asked him, glancing at her father's suit, "And did that loud voice I heard just now come from an assistant?"

"No, my voice." Saito shook his head at her with a sigh, as if it were the most obvious thing to understand.

Strolling up to her side, his hands behind his back, he gave her a once over. "Hmm... smaller and leaner, not built for the same strength as your father. My dear, what were your NEXT powers again?"

The girl blinked, choosing not to ask him why he hadn't spoken to her in the halls. She looked down at her hands, "I copy other NEXT powers through touch. Like—the last NEXT I touched was Barnaby so I currently have Hundred Power. But if Blue Rose was to walk in and brush up against me or touch me in any way, then I'd have her ice powers instead."

Saito nodded. "I see... So very similar to Origami Cyclone's power of copying the appearance of everything he touches. Interesting."

"I guess… What is this all about, sir? Why did you want to know about my powers?"

"Just an idea I have... one that will certainly get me into trouble with your fathers, but..."

He glanced over at her.

"How far are you willing to go to save your father?"

As far as I must." She answered firmly. "Barnaby can't do it alone. It's dangerous and he's not used to the change in his powers yet. But even if they did last the full five minutes still I wouldn't be able to sit at home hoping they will come home to me!"

"I see..."

Saito's face broke out into a smile.

"Truly Wild Tiger's daughter."

Turning, he began making his way to the back of the laboratory. "Come with me. There's a special project I have been working on..."

Kaede bit her lip and followed, nervously clutching her arm.

* * *

To be continued…


	11. Chapter 11

"-umbass. Dumbass. Dumba- Oh, for God's sake, you know what screw it. Wake up!"

Malvolio's voice snapped viciously and sharp against Kotetsu's eardrums, a small shock radiating through the man's body as dark matter danced around his fallen form like nimble lightning bolts.

Kotetsu cried out as he was ripped from something akin to a nap. One he didn't remember laying down to. When the pain finally ended, he lay upon his back, panting as he looked up at the ceiling above.

"Ah, finally. You snore something horrible." Malvolio commented, the late afternoon sun blazing hot down upon the rock of the coliseum.

Kotetsu scowled and sat up, his suit making a slight mechanical sound it hadn't before as he moved. His head throbbed, "Uhg, you drugged me again, didn't you?"

"Correct." Malvolio agreed, and Kotetsu could almost hear him smirking. "I see the adjustments are already functioning well. Good, good..."

"Adjustments?" Kotetsu rubbed his head, hoping to ease the dizziness. He heard the mechanical sound again and frowned, looking around for the source.

Wires and gears stuck out of the suit, the melted bits haphazardly repaired with bits of scrap, nuts and bolts. There did not seem to be any more discomfort, but something about the adjustments was uncanny, eerie and almost foreboding.

Kotetsu stared at the adjustments, "…What have you done to my suit?"

"Oh nothing major. Just a little tweaking, a bit of oiling... replacing useless parts, the usual tune up." Malvolio shrugged as if it were perfectly normal.

Kotetsu couldn't figure out why the clones would do such a thing, but said nothing, expecting that there was a possibility that his suit would work against him in his next fight.

He turned his head to look away, the burned skin on his face and neck stretching painfully.

"Either way, it is of no importance to me. Not yet. That remains to be seen." the White Rabbit droned on, snapping his fingers as the second round of battle began. "And welcome back, Sternbild! Round two is about to commence, so sit tight and enjoy the ride. It's a thrill ~"

Kotetsu pushed himself up, unsurprised to find himself swaying slightly. "So do I get to beat you this time?"

"That's up to you to decide." Malvolio grinned at him, chuckling as a low growl echoed around the stadium. "Ahh, he arrived."

To the viewers in the city, the television showed a view of the skies, dark ominous clouds rolling in to blot out the sun like ink in water. Winds began to howl and twist and blow about in a rage, screaming out a warning.

Kotetsu gasped, looking upwards. Sky High's clone—it had to be. The wind ripped through Kotetsu hair violently as he was still missing his helmet.

Thunder began to roar, the clouds flashing with light as a steady rain started to fall, growing heaver and harder until it came down in sheets, thundering out noise and bolting the coliseum with water.

It was enough to mask the figure swirling about in the sky above, white skin hidden amount the greys of clouds and blinding drops of water.

At least the cold rain soaking Kotetsu soothed his burns a little. He sighed, looking up. It would be hard to catch him to have a chance in the fight. He could use his power to jump, but the limited time limit wouldn't make room for mistakes and retries. He could practically hear his husband's voice reminding him not to use his powers until the most opportune time.

And then it appeared: the eye of the storm. White and fast, zooming towards the ground at breakneck speed, the clone of Sky High made his presence known at last, barely inches away from decapitating Kotetsu with a streak of razor sharp guided air currents.

"Watch it! That's dangerous!" Kotetsu ducked to escape, running to a new location as low as he could get with still having a decent speed.

To the people watching, the camera seemed to pan over to the clone, revealing his face and the needle-sharp teeth lining his crooked jaw.

Scary—and scary again!" Keith gasped, stepping back from the screen, his hand going up to his mouth to ensure that his teeth were not actually like that, though he was wearing his helmet.

The creature gave an inhuman screech, honing in on Kotetsu and swooping down on him again, clawed hands reaching out to grab him this time and carry him high up into the air.

The Hero twisted, hearing the claws rip metal as he moved, "Hey, have you ever fallen from a height like this?" Kotetsu yelled over the wind and rain.

The clone merely grinned at him. "All the time." he cackled, taking the hero down into a sharp dive, zooming towards the ground.

"Too bad—I hoped to share your first fall with you—make sure it hurt." Kotetsu swung back and then brought his fist hard into the side of the clone's jaw, though he had aimed for his temple where it looked softer. The mental clanged against his suit's glove and he felt a pain in his hand. But he wound up for another blow.

But the first seemed to do the trick. The clone's eyes widened and the most blood curdling scream ripped from its throat, dropping Kotetsu whist grabbing at its metallic jaw and tearing the synthetic skin off.

"Whoa!" Kotetsu reached out and shot out a shining wire from his suit, its end attaching to a high pillar before retracting and he reversed his fall before he hit the ground.

Above him, the clone withered, screaming in agony, his jaw fully exposed and bleeding from the joints. Blood splattered down onto Kotetsu's face, the clone slowly descending before coming down to crash close to where Kotetsu hung.

"Jeeze, you make me feel sorry for having bad aim on that punch…" Kotetsu muttered, lowering himself with less flair than he normally would, due to all the pain he was in, and lack of energy. Once on his feet, he could tell that the clone was in too much pain to fight back. And he looked to the place he had earlier noticed his husband's clone had disappeared through, "It's over. He can't fight anymore."

"Mmm, no..." Malvolio hummed, smiling as a low rumbling started to shake the coliseum. "But it isn't over yet."

Kotetsu's eyes widened, "Oh no…" He said, looking around before spotting Antonio's clone, "Not you again!"

The minotaur snorted, the camera zooming to reveal a helmet covered head, shaped and model akin to a bull.

"Is that supposed to be me? Tiger seems to already have fought this one or something—he looks a bit like a—a scared bunny…" Antonio muttered.

On screen, the minotaur snorted again, reaching up to grasp at its helmet. Slowly, it hooked its fingered into the side. The metal screeched, straining with a whine before giving away completely, falling apart.

There, hidden before, was a mess of a face, flesh missing on half and muscles pulsing through a mix of loose metal and wires. The white hair of the oxen beast hung shaggy and thick, two great big horns mutating out the top of its skull, its red eyes bleeding in their swollen sockets.

"Oh!" Karina gasped, her eyes widening, "That looks so painful!" She glanced over at Antonio though she couldn't see his expression through his helmet. The Heroes were still searching the city for bombs.

Kotetsu tried not to let the sorely bleeding face bother him. He reached down and ripped Keith's clone's tattered shirt from his back and shrugged, "I kind of always wanted to do this." he held it out like a matador's cape, giving it a little shake that mimicked old Spanish movies he'd seen.

The clone snorted, tilting his head to the left then right, as if blindly following the cape's movement.

"Wow…this is actually working? Didn't expect that…" Kotetsu muttered to himself. "Definitely not like his original…"

He continued to wiggle the shirt, "What is it they say in the movies? T-Tutoo—ahh, forget that! Here bull! Come get it!"

The beast growled, sensing mockery, and let out a roar before charging forward at breakneck speed, the ground shaking beneath its heavy steps.

"Closer, closer…NOW!" Kotetsu muttered to himself as the beast charged him, activating his powers just as the Rock Bison clone came within arm's reach. Quick as a flash, he grabbed on and heaved himself up onto his back, going from a matador to a rodeo cowboy in milliseconds, using his increased strength and agility to hold on as he searched for a weak point.

The beast screeched, roaring angrily as it thrashed and bucked, trying to through the man off violently.

"Yee-ha!" Kotetsu cheered, but only half into the 'game' he'd created. It was too dire that he find a weakness.

He held on as the seconds ticked by until only a few were left—and then he spotted what he hoped was his chance, knowing that once his power ran out on him that he'd be a sitting duck. He reached in under the plating on the clone's back near his neck where a gap had formed and his fingers grabbed the wires tight just as his sixty seconds were up and he was thrown off the clone of his friend, the wires ripping out with electrical sparks as he flew across the stadium and landed hard, hearing part of his suit crack from the force—and hitting his head soon after, causing him to see black spots.

But it had done the trick - the beast shrieked, sparking and shuddering as a large electrical shock ran through its body.

Kotetsu sat up with a loud moan of pain, cradling his head as he struggled to focus his eyes on his opponent; watching the effect of what he had done.

Even as the beast fell, sparks dancing fairy patterns around his increasingly bleeding body, something grabbed at Kotetsu's leg, yanking him back.

Kotetsu screamed out in surprised terror, twisting about and seeing the Sky High clone. He pulled his free leg up and kicked hard at his jaw again.

The clone screeched in agony, but this time retaliated, biting down hard on Kotetsu's leg. The needle-like teeth cut through armor like butter and ripped into his flesh. Crying out openly, the added pain all too much for him to get by with simply watery eyes, Kotetsu began to panic, hitting, scratching and biting to get free.

The clone did the same, snarling and trying to get at Kotetsu. However, its jaw was its weak point, and the second hit had struck a nerve, and the clone's attempts faltered.

Over and over again Kotetsu aimed for that weak spot, just wanting it to be over.

Finally, the clone fell back, clutching at his jaw and reduced to small, child-like whimpers. He lay curled up on the ground, shivering as he stared at Kotetsu with hurt, tear filled eyes.

Kotetsu crawled away, finding his leg too damaged to use. Panting he looked back at both unmoving opponents.

The clone of Sky High sniffled, scooting away from Kotetsu as if afraid. The clone of Rock Bison, however, lay fallen on the ground, wheezing as a tube - assumedly one for an oxygen tank or synthetic lung that had come loose off his throat - hissed and wriggled about like some strange alien worm. The minotaur gasped, unable to breathe on his own it seemed.

"Please—let it be done…" Kotetsu groaned.

The minotaur was growing frantics, bleeding more as he tried to struggle for air, clawing frantically at the ground.

"It's over!" Kotetsu croaked.

The minotaur let out an airy rasp for help.

"It's over! He needs help!"

But there was no sign of Malvolio, the storm having knocked out his communications.

"Please…I can't help him—I don't know how…"

The minotaur's head tilted back, the hole and rim in its throat where the tube could connect, visible.

Kotetsu sighed and pulled himself over to him, looking at the mess of wires he'd made until he found a tube. Picking up up between his fingers he searched for a possible connection and when he found one, he plugged it in with a snap.

A hiss echoed over the expanse of the arena, the minotaur shuddering slightly. Beads of sweat trickled down his body, his chest heaving heavily as air rushed back into grateful lungs. He snorted, shivering, waiting until he caught his breath before turning to look at Kotetsu.

An odd crooning noise rumbled from the blinded beast's throat, and he shifted to rest his head on Kotetsu's lap, purring softly.

"…Okay…this I didn't expect…" Kotetsu muttered, shuttering in pain.

The minotaur curled up, seeming content and passive. Watching him from a distance the Sky High clone whimpered again, eyeing him with distrust.

Kotetsu looked over at him and sighed as it seemed Barnaby's clone wasn't paying much attention to the 'fight'. "I'm sorry I had to hurt you. You didn't give me much choice. Come here and maybe I can make you feel a little better?" He couldn't help it. He was a Hero for the people, and he was a father. These clones were similar to Ivan's clone. They needed a positive figure in their lives, and as long as they were not trying to hurt or kill anyone—namely himself due to the circumstances, he couldn't stand by and ignore their pain and suffering.

The clone hissed, acting like a child who had been spanked by their parent. Yet he shuffled back and forth, tempted to go but too afraid to move, his hands still clutching at his oozing jaws.

Keeping calm and giving a friendly smile, Kotetsu held his hands out, palms up to show he meant no harm, "It is completely up to you, Stormy. But I would like to show you I am sorry for hitting you."

The clone continued to stare at him warily, unmoving for several minutes. Then, he slowly and carefully started to drag himself closer to Kotetsu, until he was only inches away from the man.

Kotetsu moved slowly so as not to scare him as the City of Sternbuild watched as he reached out a helping hand to the very people who had previously tried to kill him. He turned the clone he'd named Stormy's head to the side, looking at the damage.

"Not much I can do…" He muttered as he pulled back and removed some of his armor to get to the cloth under armor. He ripped his sleeve off and used it to tie around Stormy's head to help support his jaw. "Try not to move it too much for a while, okay, Stormy?"

"There, see? You aren't evil; you just need a little bit of love." Kotetsu smiled, rubbing his bitten leg. It was incredibly tender, and he was sure infection would be setting in.

Both clones continued to purr contently, snuggled against Kotetsu like lost, lonely children. Then, one after the other, they drifted off to sleep, curling up into balls.

Back in Sternbuild, Kaede watched the screen with a small smile, "That's my dad… Don't worry, we'll find you soon…" She looked over at the door to Dr. Saito's lab.

* * *

To be continued…


	12. Chapter 12

Kotetsu was right and wrong in his conclusion that the king clone had lost interest in the fight. The screen that had displayed Malvolio's face during the fight had been knocked offline due to the storm. However, the camera itself was still active, and now the White Rabbit frowned as his two body builder clone resigned to cuddling with Kotetsu like some mongrel stray pups.

He cursed, pulling back, fingers drumming impatiently on the seat. H-01 glanced his way but he gave the android no notice, his mouth set thin and eyes blazing with self-contained anger.

"I make fall down?" Ryan asked tugging on his father's elbow before White Rose walked over and picked him up, her red eyes on the screen, taking in Kotetsu.

Malvolio glanced over them, his sister and son. "Amaryllis?" he said at last. "Do you see what I see?"

She gave a nod.

"I make fall down!" Ryan repeated, picking up on his parent's mood, "Bad—bad kitty!"

Malvolio managed a smile, reaching out to stroke the child's soft hair. "Soon, little one, soon."

He looked back up at Amaryllis. "I've been thinking... he's getting too close, to confident. I don't like that. He's not following the rules."

Again, she nodded before speaking in her bell-like voice, "Pets need to be house broken."

"Break!" Ryan shouted with a laugh, clapping his hands.

The White Rabbit leaned over, giving her a short but sweet kiss. Without pulling away, he summoned his manservant, keeping his eyes locked with Amaryllis.

"Fetch and prepare the dog..."

 

* * *

The signal for Sternbild remained strong despite the storm, yet not a cloud in the sky could be seen for miles, leaving little hope regarding the whereabouts of their foe. It became a small discussion between figureheads and police over the possibility of their target being from another state or even another country all together. Both options were becoming increasingly likely, and neither they nor the Heroes had any idea on which was the more obvious answer. It was a forked road leading both ways into shrouding fog.

In response, analysists, professors and others of similar fields were called in, the video becoming a source to examine and a critical, untouchable piece of evidence. Meaning that the Heroes, through protest and irritation, were removed from the safety of their Tower and placed out into the minefield like soldiers of war wading through a thick fear infested swamp.

Agnes was the one to halt Barnaby. Catching him geared up, a perched parrot on the top of the tower, she argued for over fifteen minutes before coaxing him into diving down into the mist below. The others caught up with him soon after, splitting off into groups of two to find the scattered eggs of bombs laid through the city.

Sternbild was a place of warmth, light and voice. Today the streets were bare, the sunlight shining down through the branching skyscrapers to greet no one on the roads above, midway and below. But there was no heat to be held in the concrete jungle, a bitter ice shivering the trees and making the dark, looming walls of brick and cement even more unfriendly. Silence seeped in poisonous, intoxicating every single stage as if it were the apocalypse and the city were only a fraction of the metaphor embracing a tragic fate of humanity.

Barnaby realized the apocalypse was, like an old movie quoted, now.

All the bombs had been located and the area around them roped off to prevent accidental triggers until they could figure out how to safely deactivate them. They still didn't know if it had been a bluff, but the safety of the city came first.

"I could try freezing them in thick ice. It may block any censors on them." Blue Rose suggested as the heroes all gathered to discuss their next move regarding the bombs.

"I could try to blow them into the water?" Sky High also spoke up.

"What if I tried to short them out?" Dragon Kid asked.

"The short could just as easily trigger them." Rock Bison shook his head.

Barnaby remained silently, his eyes glued to the screen of a large, holographic billboard. Kotetsu had long since dozed off in his spot, the clones curled up at his side like nesting cats. His hands fisted, brow furrowing. They didn't seem too dangerous, but Barnaby wasn't one to forgive so easily. Maverick and Ouroboros had taught him that - ironically, the same people who had funded and created the clones in the first place.

For what cause? To vanquish the Heroes and take their place? Was this what Maverick had planned all along?

H-01 was enough to make his blood boil, but his own face plastered upon the screen with a mocking grin was more than enough to send his skin crawling.

He hated the abominations, all of them. For what they did to his husband, he could not forgive. And yet, watching Kotetsu turn the vicious creatures into harmless, docile and even playful things was unsettling.

Something wasn't right here. And, watching the Sky High clone fiddle almost fixated on a rock shaped uncannily like a fish, he had a hunch on what exactly was going on.

"Stop watching that, Handsome." Fire Emblem said, snapping his fingers in front of Barnaby's face to grab his attention, "It only makes you look depressed. We can't help him yet, but we can work on helping the city. You know he'd want all of us saving the city. It's why he agreed to such horrific broadcasted battles. It seems to me they forgot to cut the cameras this time. Nothing is happening but at least you know they aren't hurting him more during the break."

Barnaby repressed the urge to snap at the other Hero, even if he knew Nathan was right. There was literally nothing they could do for Kotetsu, not until his location was deciphered. All Barnaby could do for the moment was sit like a duck and hope the hunter wouldn't shoot.

Forcing himself away from distraction and onto the task at hand, he joined the cluster of Heroes wavering near the borderline of a supposed bomb location.

"What have we come to?" he questioned, thankful the helmet hid his aggravated expression from his colleagues.

"Using ice or wind to get the bombs out." Dragon Kid sighed.

"Do we even know exactly where the bomb is sitting?" Barnaby questioned, straining to look over the massive shoulders of Rock Bison.

"The scanners Dr. Saito created picks up their location. But we don't know the range—if any—for the activators, and we don't know how large the burst area will be since we can't even go in to get a good look." Origami Cyclone sighed.

"From what the not-you said," Keith commented, his faceless face turning to Barnaby, "one alone could inflict massive damage... and these are spread out. And spread out again."

"How did they even clone us?" Karina slammed her hands down on a railing, the air getting colder around the heroes, "Running around with our faces! She can't even act the part right!"

"Uh, you got off topic…" Pao-Lin sighed.

"How dare she touch what I can't! And how dare she give the image to the entire city of me with mister cold and boring like that!" Ice crystals started to form around them.

Barnaby felt the insult bite with needle teeth, but decided it was better to ignore the fracture to his image and the jab of jealous venom spat his way.

Instead he gave Rose a cold look through his helmet and let her seethe. It wasn't worth the fight if he'd already won. The thought itself was a childish smug poke of confidence but it was better than reacting vocally at all.

"Uhh..." Bison stared at the girl then Barnaby, sensing the hostility. "Might have one idea how they got DNA..."

"How?" several of the heroes asked—all but the two who were glaring at each other.

"Rotwag," Bison said, and when his comrades looked confused, he continued, "he was the one who got samples from us. When we were knocked out and placed in those chambers with... the bombs."

It wasn't a pleasant memory to recall, especially considering he'd been the one to actually consider pushing the button to save himself. In his defense, it was for Kotetsu - his friend had trusted him to look after his daughter should anything happen to him during the fight with H-01.

Ironically the same clone who had risen from death to haunt them again.

No one said anything, silence stretching on as they all remembered.

But then the silence was broken. "Hey, Junior!"

Barnaby blinked in surprised, turning around to see the one person he expected the least to appear in this chaos.

Ryan Goldsmith, otherwise known as the Hero Golden Ryan.

"What the heck 's going on? I keep seeing you on screens everywhere with that partner of yours and the Ice Cutie, here." he patted Blue Rose on the head, "Which is all well and good but what the hell is with that little tiny Silver Ryan stealing my spotlight?"

"Don't touch me." Karina hissed, swatting his hand away.

"How would I know?" Barnaby scowled. "I'm as new to this as you are."

"But it's you…"

"It's not me." Barnaby shook his head. "It's not any of us. They're clone, copies. Made to look exactly like us, but for what reason and method I do not know."

"Your raccoon sure seems real…"

"Tiger is real." Karina snapped, "How do you not know what is going on? The entire city does!"

"I mute it every time it comes on."

"Why are you even here?" Barnaby interrupted him, narrowing his eyes in suspicion behind the safety of his helmet. Ryan make act dumb, look like a fool, and drive people up the wall but he was by no means stupid.

"Aren't you overseas these days?"

"I was called back to help out with some class at the Academy. They needed someone to fill in for a teacher and who better than one who knows first hand what it's like to be a hero? And you kiddies are so busy soaking in your spot lights."

"Half of us are older than you." Barnaby sighed, feeling the sudden need to rub his temples and take a dose of aspirin.

He was about to speak again when Malvolio's voice echoed out across the desolate city.

"Welcome back. I apologize first hand for the technical difficulties. We've taken care of the issue and restored communications back online. Just in time too-"

Flashing back to the arena, Barnaby noticed two things with cold blood. The two clones were gone, and Kotetsu was sitting alone looking dazed, confused and distressed.

"What did you do?!" he shouted, Dragon Kid squeaking in fear of being discovered from his outburst.

Malvolio either heard nothing or was hell bent on ignoring him at this point. It pissed Barnaby off. His husband was out there, in dire need of help, and not for the first time that day Barnaby felt a seething resentment boil in his chest from being stuck with his colleagues looking for impossible bombs.

Kotetsu's hands were shaking as he held his head. He really did need proper rest and care, he was feeling sick… Yet, he pushed himself up and stumbled over to where he spotted his forgotten helmet. Maybe he should have never removed it… Truthfully, he didn't remember taking it off, but he had.

"Ah, good afternoon, Mr. Tiger." Malvolio purred. "I hope you had a good rest. Round four is about to begin, but first-"

He clicked his tongue, sounding slightly on edge.

"I would like to discuss a little... _problem_ we've been having."

"What? I'm playing your game. I'm facing the opponents you send at me." Kotetsu muttered his voice low and showing weakness.

"You are." Malvolio agreed, leaning forward with his chin on his knuckles, elbows resting on knees. "However, there seems to be a bit of foul play undergoing on your part. Our deal was to fight. So why is it-"

He clicked his tongue again, tilting his head to the side.

"-that I see you luring what is us over to what is you."

"I fight them." Kotetsu disagreed, "But I also show them kindness. It is up to them if they accept that after the fight is over."

"It's not your place to show kindness to us." Malvolio hissed. "Nothing good comes out of humans. Do not try to swindle us."

Refocusing himself, he cleared his throat.

"So... in that regard... If you change the rules then so will I."

He snapped his fingers.

"Originally, I planned to hold out until you were defeated, but this is becoming troublesome. Therefore-"

The door to the coliseum opened. A familiar bark and a happy yip echoed out over the empty stage. White fur ruffled in the cool wind, the scrape of metal digging grooves into the rocks mingled with heavy pants and little growls of greeting.

And to the audience watching, the white wolf returned to the screen, trotting happily up to Kotetsu, licking his chops like he'd finished a good meal.

"It's time to make a choice, Mr. Tiger."

"…If you mean for me to fight him, nothing will happen." Kotetsu placed his hand on the dog's head, scratching his ears, "This one's a good boy and has been since the beginning. He won't attack me. You have already lost this round."

"Oh, that's not what I had in mind." Malvolio cooed, almost sweetly. "See, I don't like you breaking MY rules, so I will break yours in return. You see this dog?"

He nodded to the wolf currently covering Kotetsu's face in slobbery dog kisses.

"Because you were so concerned with 'helping' the side not of your own... you get to choose. Save your city... or save the dog. The choice is yours."

Kotetsu frowned, "I don't understand…"

"To put it simply, there are bombs in the city... and now the dog is a walking bomb as well."

Kotetsu's eyes widened and he grit his teeth, "Bastard!"

"Mhm. Fun, isn't it? You have five minutes to choose. I'd suggest the city - that animal isn't worth the life of a human, isn't that right? Humans are most important."

"He is human!" Kotetsu hissed angrily, "Don't mistake his enhanced NEXT powers for what he is! He's a lonely child starved for affection.

"But..." Dragon Kid frowned, looking up at the screen. "That's just a dog..."

Kotetsu was kneeling down before the creature, stroking his cheek, "Can you change back for me? I need you to talk to me."

The dog licked his face, giving a happy yip. Slowly, his features and form started to shift, changing from canine into human.

"Good boy." Kotetsu smiled, touching the top of the Ivan clone's head, "Did they do something to you, Ivory?" He asked, deciding to give him a proper name.

"...What... in the world..." Antonio sputtered, breaking the silence at last.

"…I'm a dog…" Ivan squeaked, "Why am I a dog?"

"You're like John?" Keith stared at him, as if expecting the boy to grow ears and a tail on spot and begin humping the nearest telephone pole.

Kotetsu waited before repeating, "Did they hurt you?"

The newly christened Ivory tilted his head, tongue lolling out the side of his mouth.

"Oh, I didn't do anything aside from feed him." Malvolio commented.

"Shut up, Barnaby!" Kotetsu snapped, oblivious of the fact that his nightmare and his life seemed to be merging together, and completely unaware of the fact he'd called the clone by his husband's name in his anger and frustration, "I wasn't talking to you!"

Barnaby was taken aback, staring up at his husband's face in shock. Had he... just referred to the clone with his name?

"Oh—that's not good…" Nathan looked at Barnaby, "Tiger's losing it without realizing it. He's getting a warped reality…"

"…At least he didn't call him 'Bunny'?" Dragon Kid tried to comfort Barnaby.

Without a word, Barnaby turned on his heel, walking away swiftly before leaping up and climbing the expanse of buildings, becoming lost in the concrete jungle. He needed to be alone.

"Oh no…" Nathan shook his head sadly, "Don't be mad at him, Handsome, we don't know what he's gone though other than what we are shown…"

On screen Kotetsu was focusing on Ivory, "Did they give you a snack?"

The dog nodded, almost shaking with happiness on spot, trying to cuddle up next to his Mama.

Kotetsu grit his teeth again as he hugged the boy. He couldn't do it. He couldn't choose to kill anyone, this clone was no exception. He had to save both the city and Ivory…but how?

"Three minutes." Malvolio yawned boredly.

Ivory licked Kotetsu's cheek, his tail wagging furiously.

The time ticked on, passing with taunting clock sound effects from the clones remaining loyal to Malvolio. And he could practically hear the citizens of the city outraged that he hadn't said to save the city yet… if only he had more time to—that's it. It was risky but…

"…Save…the city." He finally said, only seconds left on his time limit.

Malvolio grinned, and pulled up at remote.

"As you wish, Mr. Tiger."

And pressed the button.

Ivory seemed unharmed at first, panting contently from where he sat on the ground next to his "mother", happier than he'd been for the longest time. But then, a painful heat started to arise from inside of him, a ticking sound echoing out from the confines of his belly. He whimpered, looking down then up, his teary eyes pleading with his mother figure.

"I'm sorry." Kotetsu stroked his cheek with a parental fondness before he turned Ivory around and aggressively, desperately began to force him to purge the contents of his stomach, going as far as to activate his power to do so and finally the boy lost hold of everything, the bomb and food he'd eaten all spilling out his mouth. Kotetsu grabbed the bomb and threw it before picking up Ivory and running, his power allowing him speed that Malvolio couldn't match.

He was out of the fighting arena and down the hall in milliseconds. "I'm sorry, I know it hurts. But I need to find that control room of his!" he gasped, closing the visor of his mask. He knew they would be coming after him, after all.

"Real pleasant of you." Malvolio's voice echoed in his ear. "Now H-01 has dog puke to clean up."

Despite the calmness of his voice, it was relatively clear that he was barely holding his anger in check.

"You know... I was hoping it wouldn't come to this. But you gave me no choice."

A ticking sound started in Kotetsu's ear.

"I'd give your city an hour before the bomb goes off. Well done, Mr. Kaburagi! Shame you won't be there to see it blow!"

He spat the man's last name out, the voice taking on a cruel, insane note before ending in a static hiss. But unbeknownst to Kotetsu, he was not alone. The moment he'd put the visor down, a camera had activated inside the helmet. And now, the whole city was watching from his eyes as he stumbled further into darkness.

Ivory, in the meantime, howled in pain and misery.

"I'm sorry, it was the only way to save you. Now I have others to save." Kotetsu whispered as he ran. His powers then running out and his speed slowing, "Can you help me? I really need it."

Ivory just looked at him with hurt eyes.

"I'm sorry." Kotetsu repeated, kissing the boy's cheek. He sighed and set him down, "I need to stop the other bombs now. I may have cracked your ribs, but you'll live. You really are a good boy, Ivory. Just like Ivan." He smiled, though his face couldn't be seen, and then turned to search for a way to protect Sternbild.

The dog watched him for a moment before scampering off into the darkness, his hook scrapping against the ground.  When Kotetsu didn't follow, he came back, barking at him.

Kotetsu bit his lip before choosing to follow, "I hope you know where we are going…"

"Why... does it have a hook?" Antonio questioned, staring at the large metal claw making up for the absence of a right hand on the dog's arm.

"Don't call him an 'it'!" Ivan insisted, "That's me there! And I'm helping Tiger it looks like!"

"All of them are a mix of cloning, modified genetics, and robotics."  Karina thought out loud, "Maybe they didn't have hand parts left for his robotic pieces."

"Or," Ryan grinned, folding his hands behind his head as he lounged on a public bench. "Maybe it was on purpose."

"Why would you say that?" Karina asked.

"Well, look at him. What does he seem most to you?"

"I don't know—Like Ivan if he were a dog?"

"Not a dog per say," Ryan hummed, glancing back up at the screen as Ivory lead Kotetsu down a narrow route of halls and broken tunnels. "Too big to be a domesticated dog."

"Well it's not like Ivan would be a poodle!" Karina huffed.

"It's a wolf, Sweet Cheeks. And what are wolves known for?"

"Hunting…in a pack? And don't call me that!"

"Sure thing, Sweet Cheeks."

There was a flash of cold through the air and Ryan found himself frozen solid up to his neck. "I dare you to call me that again!"

"Heh, kinda a cold little rosebud, aren't you?"

"Just spit out what you mean about the wolf thing!"

"Violent creatures, Sweet Cheeks, very violent creatures."

With another flash of cold, Ryan's head was also fully encased in ice and Blue Rose turned to storm away.

Ryan's eyes flickered towards her, staring for a moment before a blue glow surrounded his body. The ice shattered, a gravity force swelling out like flood of force.

As soon as the ice shattered and fell away, another burst of ice froze the former partner of Barnaby Brooks Jr. before Karina was out of sight.

The ice shattered again, the gravitational field spreading out to accidently catch the other heroes-

-and run right into the danger zone of the bomb. The rock and debris surrounding the weapon shifted, slowly crumbling away like a sinkhole opening up beneath their feet, falling away to reveal-

-nothing.

* * *

To be continued…


	13. Chapter 13

Arriving at a door, Kotetsu kicked it open and looked in. Screens, dials, and buttons greeted him and he hurried in. "Thank you! I think this is it! Now, how to deactivate the bombs? Uhg, Barnaby would know…Wish he could talk me through this…" he muttered to himself as he studied the panels of switches and buttons.

Ivory crept around the room, sniffing the strange devices and machines, tapping and clawing at some broken bits with his hook.

"Well, how much more harm could I do?" Kotetsu shrugged, starting to play with buttons and switches. Finally, the ticking seemed to stop and a message appeared on all the screens.

Bombs deactivated. Countdown canceled.

With a sigh of exhaustion and relief, Kotetsu let himself fall back onto the floor. "Thank goodness I didn't make it worse…"

Little did he know that back in the city, Ryan's stunt had revealed an empty setting instead of the expected bomb.

"What... the hell... is this?!" Bison exclaimed, staring wide eyed in disbelief. "Where is it?!"

"But even the sensors picked up that there was a bomb here…" Ivan muttered, looking at the screen that confirmed it.

"Was it a fake?" Dragon Kid asked, standing on her tip toes to get a better look at the screen. "Or maybe they played with the system?"

"Uhg, we wasted so much time!" What if the bombs are someplace else?" Ivan groaned.

"Or it was all a bluff in order to get our Wild Tiger to cooperate and play his games…to prevent him from escaping. Anyone who knows Tiger would know that he would never abandon citizens in order to save himself." Nathan shrugged.

"That bastard." Antonio growled. "I'll ring his neck if that's the case!"

"Why would he want Tiger in the first though? It doesn't make any sense..." Dragon Kid frowned.

"I think that is what we need to find out." Nathan sighed, "But we also need to confirm that the bombs are in fact all a bluff. How about we split up into teams, half of us check all the bomb locations and the other half tries to dig up what we can about these clones of ours, and why they may be targeting our Tiger in such a way."

"Agreed." Antonio nodded, itching to get his hands on the creatures toying with his best friend. "They've caused enough damage as it is."

"We~llllll, if you guys are doing that, then I'll go with Sweet Cheeks and Junior." Ryan pushed himself up from his seat with a grin. "We'll check if that Saito guy there has any news about the location. That's what they've been held up with, no? Trying to track these double teamers down?"

"I doubt three people need to do that." Dragon Kid frowned, "The more heroes we have out here and doing research, the better. We should call Blue Rose back, too. Barnaby is taking this all pretty hard, so I think we can let him alone to check in with Doctor Saito."

"Leave him alone?" Ryan snorted. "Kiddo, you aren't certain he'll run off to save that husband of his? That's what I would do if someone did this to my Molly."

"That's not what I said!" she huffed, crossing her arms, "He'll be with Doctor Saito and everyone else at headquarters! Plus he has Tiger's Daughter to worry about since he's her step-dad now. He's her guardian while Kotetsu is missing."

"Whatever you say." Ryan shrugged, walking off into the same direction Blue Rose went.

"He…seriously isn't going to help?" Dragon Kid blinked, "I know he isn't part of First League anymore, but this is a pretty big situation the city is in…"

"Never mind him, let's just focus." Bison growled. "What else do we know about these things?"

It wasn't that Antonio did not care, but the rage and adrenaline running through him was too much at that current place in time.

"You, Sky High, and Origami start on that and Dragon kid and I will deal with the bomb locations." Nathan cooed, pinching Antonio's butt as he swept past. "Come on, Girl power will find the truth to the bombs!" He pulled his self-assigned partner off to check out the other locations, leaving the three remaining boys behind.

Antonio turned to his teammates. Sky High was standing off to the side while Origami was looking straight at him as if expecting an order or some form of a plan to come spewing out of Bison's mouth. Only then did Antonio realize how ultimately screwed they were.

"So... Where do we start...?"

 

* * *

Kotetsu finished tearing apart the machine, hoping that it would stop the clones from activating the bombs again. Even going as far as to destroying important looking parts by stomping on them.

He then half collapsed onto the floor, his injuries too much for him to do much more. Adrenalin had run out and he was all too aware of each and every wound. He needed to get out, needed to contact authorities and the other heroes…but he just couldn't move.

Ivory had long since wandered across the room and was contently nibbling on the end of a very valuable looking piece of machinery when he saw his 'mother' fall. Crying out in worry, he scampered over to him, whimpering as he collapsed to his knees besides the man and began sniffing his face.

"I'll be okay," Kotetsu groaned, "It just hurts a lot…" Kotetsu struggled to open the faceplate on his helmet.

Ivory cried, tears rolling down his cheeks, and licked one of the burns on his face.

"...M...Muh..."

"Thank you…you are the only one to be kind to me from the beginning here, Ivory…" Kotetsu gave a pained smile, closing his eyes o rest them.

"M...Mu-ah...Ma..! Ma...ma! MAMA!"

Kotetsu cracked open an eye to weakly look at Ivory, "Mama?" his lips twitched upwards in amusement.

"Mama..." Ivory whimpered, tapping Kotetsu armor with his giant hook.

"I'm okay." Kotetsu repeated reassuringly, weakly touching the hook, "…Mostly…"

Ivory didn't look convinced, laying down besides his mother to snuggle up against him.

"Despite knowing he was still in danger, Kotetsu slipped into a deep but fitful sleep.

Ivory whimpered, feeling uneasy with his mother's current state and the confines of the room. Something wasn't right. Something was watching them, waiting until Kotetsu drifted off before making its first move.

A crash sounded from the far reaches of the lab, sparks flying for a mere split second.

But it wasn't enough to wake the exhausted and badly injured hero trapped within an unmoving body, closed eyes and deaf ears.

Ivory, however, stiffened, a low growl of warning rumbling from his throat.

Suddenly, a large monitor came flying at them, twisting through the air at a dangerous speed.

Ivory shrieked, shoving his mother aside in time before the monitor smashed into him, sending him crashing into the remains of the control unit.

"Stupid mutt." White Rose's soft voice said from the doorway, her red eyes watching the pathetic clone yelp in pain, trying to unpin himself from where he was trapped under the monitor. She snapped her fingers and pointed at the vulnerable hero before turning to go.

At her command, red eyes opened up in the shadows, a low snarl rattling behind sharp fangs and a salivating tongue. Claws dug into the walls of the lab, scrapping and scratching long groves into the stone as it neared closer to the unaware Hero lying still on the floor.

Whimpering in his sleep, Kotetsu's head turned, a tuft of messy long hair falling into his face.

Feet tapped against the floor in a rapid pace, a shadow zooming fast past machinery and broken scrap, too dark and blurry to see. Ivory whimpered, barking loudly in hope of awakening his mother, blood flying from his mouth.

Slowly, the noise caused Kotetsu to stir and he opened his eyes to see something charging him. He blinked as it registered in his mind that he was under attack.

Ivory howled in pain from nearby, the shadow stalking the hero pausing with a scowl.

It was difficult, but Kotetsu pushed himself up and limped over to Ivory. He was too weak to even ask what had happened, he just grunted, activating his power without thought and pushing the monitor off Ivory.

Ivory dragged himself out from underneath, blood covering his back from where the glass had cut into his skin, and snuggled against his mother's leg, sniffling.

"I'm sorry; you're getting as beat up as me…" Kotetsu muttered, petting his head, "Let's escape together."

Ivory was about to lick his cheek when he stopped short and perked up, staring off to the side. His face contorted and he snarled, seeing the shadow approach them from the side.

Kotetsu glanced in that direction as well.

Young and identical to her original, pale as a ghost with glowing red eyes, the clone of Pao-Lin emerged from the shadows in a fury, her bipedal lets fashioned in the same manner as Ivan and her hands bearing long, deadly claws. A snarl ripped from her throat, sharp teeth bared for attack, as she leapt from the side, aiming for the Hero's weak side.

Kotetsu's eyes widened and it was all he could do to stumble aside to avoid the attack. "I just can't get a break in this place!" He gasped, "I'm done playing your games, Not-Bunny! I'm going home to my family and a hospital."

The new clone only hissed, skidding away and quickly righting herself for another attack. But Ivory intervened, smashing into her as best he could, knocking her off balance and snarling, hook brandished in warning.

She barked at him.

"Oh, not Dragon Kid, too…" Kotetsu groaned, recognizing that her clone had also been mixed with animal DNA at some point. He wished he still had that journal he had found. It may have had something useful. And she seemed much more aggressive…

Cursing himself for hap-hazardly using his power and wasting so much of his one minute as he realized he had only seconds more, Kotetsu limped as fast as he could towards the two clones.

The girl snarled, nimbly dodging the other dog's hook, backing up unaware that Kotetsu was closing in. Until the last second, that is, when she caught sight of him off to her side and lashed out, finding his arm with her mouth and biting down.

Kotetsu cried out as she had found part of his arm exposed due to the damage done to his suit.

Taking advantage of the last seconds of his power, Kotetsu brought his fist hard into her stomach.

The blow winded her and she gasped, briefly letting go of his arm, blood pouring from her mouth.

The glow of Hundred power faded away from Kotetsu and he stumbled back, not knowing if the blood was his or hers.

She coughed, clutching at her stomach in pain.

"I'm sorry, had to." Kotetsu said, clinging to his newest wound to try and stop the bleeding.

She hissed at him, wincing and growing angry from the pain. Snarling, she readied herself to attack again when Ivory's hook came down, slicing into her back. She screeched, as did he, turning her head to snap her jaws down on the boy's naked shoulder.

He screamed, withering and spraying blood, lunging in retaliation and biting her arm, hook raised for another attack. Sensing danger, Pao Lin's clone changed her position, moving her jaws from his shoulder to his hook arm, as he bit harder in attempt to shake her off.

"No! You'll kill each other!" Kotetsu risked himself by getting between them, struggling to pull them apart.

Ivory was moved away but the Pao Lin clone was given full access and she took it. Attacking, clawing and biting at every place she could get her claws and teeth at.

Struggling, Kotetsu got a second wind of adrenalin and he managed to catch her in a headlock, holding her firm so she couldn't claw or bite. "Please, settle down. I don't want to hurt a cute flower like you." He muttered into her ear.

She hissed at him, spitting in his face.

He didn't react to it. Compared to everything, spit was a tame attack. "Shhh, you'll waste your energy, little flower."

She squirmed in his hold, glaring up at him. Then she started to glow orange.

Kotetsu gasped and held her a little tighter, trying to remember what her powers had been listed as.

Two things happened. The room shuddered, as if coming alive as objects rose and metal groaned agonizingly across tile, stirring awake and alive. The second, Pao Lin's mutant clone bullied her favor more through a grotesque shifting of bone and muscle, form changing and soon out growing the loosening hold of Kotetsu's arms.

So much for calming her with words. Kotetsu cursed, finding himself between a rock and a hard place. If he stayed, she would overpower him, if he let go, she would round on him before he could get far.

Her body continued to change and grow, becoming more vile, disgusting and ugly as the seconds passed. White fur balding in patches. Limbs perfect for feline crouching were they not twisted with the idea of a canine in mind. Long ears that could neither decide if they were pointed or flopped, wide or thin. A muzzle long and crooked from genetics gone wrong, teeth poking out the sides of the lips like an organic chainsaw. Eyes red with pupils in slits, staring up at Kotetsu with hate, hunger and murder.

"…Please don't hurt me." Kotetsu squeaked.

A low, guttural growl was his answer, claws extending far past any definition of safe.

"No? Not going to be a nice flower?" Kotetsu sighed and took a deep breath before risking his next move before she did. He let go of her, dropping her to the floor as he limped as fast as he could towards the door.

"Ivory!" he called, hoping he would get out with him.

The dog scampered after him, panting heavily as blood spilled from his wounds. He slowed as he reached his mother, the beast behind them giving a loud roar and bolting after them.

Kotetsu reached the door, and when he and Ivory cleared it, he slammed it shut; though the lock was on the inside.

The beast slammed into the door, the force almost enough to knock it off its hinges, collapsing onto Kotetsu who had tried to hold it shut. He cried out, sure it would be the end of him.

"Kaede! Bunny!" Tears stung his eyes and wounds as he screamed out their names over and over again.

Ivory barked and snarled, hovering over his mother to defend him from the monster. Hisses and snarled filled the air as dog and hybrid faced off, the clone distracted from her prey momentarily.

No. Kotetsu stopped his screams. No, he couldn't give up. He had to see his family again, he had to keep Ivory safe. They would only continue to abuse him, here. Kotetsu grit his teeth, trying to push the heavy metal door and the hybrid atop it up and off himself as she was distracted. Sweat broke out over his forehead as he pushed it upwards.

His hands and arms shook with no give to the door. He cried out as he tried with all his strength, squeezing his eyes shut as he screamed his daughter's name for strength.

And then it happened. Completely impossible, but there, on the screens of Sternbild for all to see, was a blue glow emanating from Kotetsu's body far before his powers had a chance to recharge.

And then the door was off him, snapping up and crushing Dragon Kid's clone between it and the wall before the door clattered to the floor with a deafening clang.

Kotetsu could feel energy seeping back into him, wounds starting to heal as he stood up. If he realized what was happening, he didn't show it as he swept Ivory up in his arms.

The clone screeched as the sound of something squelching, cracking, breaking and ripping arose amidst the clang of metal and stone. When the door fell, so did she, her right fore and hind legs bent at odd angles. She gagged, howling in agony, lunging at Kotetsu as best she could in rage.

"Stop." Kotetsu's voice echoed with power, "I don't like hurting you. If you stop then I can. I need to get home to my family." He kicked out as she came in range.

But she just kept coming back for more, her movements slowly with every new injury she was dealt, two useless legs weighing her down.

Kotetsu cringed with each and every hit he debt as he made his way down the hall, trying to find a way out. More than once he heard bones break, but still she came at him despite his pleading that she stop.

Another kick and he heard two more bones snap. One when he kicked and the other when she flew into the wall.

A loud, bloodcurdling scream echoed down the hall, and this time, she didn't come back. Ivory whimpered, tiredly leaning against his mother for support, injured and exhausted.

His minute was up—long over, in fact, but yet his glow powered on.

Concerned for the clone he'd just hit, Kotetsu set Ivory down and turned back to her, kneeling down and cringing at the damage he'd caused her. "I'm sorry." He touched the top of her head, "You left me no choice but still, I wish I hadn't hurt you so, little Flower."

The clone lay on the ground, unmoving and her eyes wide open in shock and her mouth relaying a silent scream. Then she shivered, a bubble appearing underneath her skin. It grew and stretched, until burst open as something long, spidery and gross slipped out onto the floor and tried to scuttle away.

Kotetsu screamed and in his startled state, he smacked it as hard as he could with his fist, activating Good Luck Mode as he did so. Afterwards he blinked, "…I hope it's okay that I did that…"

A choked sob sounded, the orange glow around the clone fading as her body slowly shifted back into human form, bones and flesh twisted at wrong angles and blood spilling from her joints.

"Oh—oh no!" Kotetsu panicked. He picked her up to get her in a more comfortable position, trying to right what was broken. "I was too rough on you!"

She tried to squirm into his hold letting out almost infant cries of terror.

"Shh, it's alright, I won't hurt you again." Kotetsu promised, stroking her hair in a fatherly fashion. "I know it hurts, I can't help that. But allow me to try to stop the bleeding…"

He shed more of his ruined and beat up armor so that he could rip off more of his under-suit, using it to apply pressure to the heavily bleeding areas by ripping them into strips and tying them around the wounds. As he worked his Hundred Power abruptly stopped, but he paid it no mind.

All throughout she whimpered, watching him with frightened eyes, the aggression and adrenaline gone and leaving a wounded child in their wake. She shivered as her wounds and joints were bound, jumping slightly as Ivory padded over to give her a curious sniff.

"Okay," Kotetsu said as he finished up the last bandage, "I'm taking you with me. You need a hospital more than I do." He slipped her into his arms again.

She whined at him, Ivory licking his mother's arm and whimpering himself.

"Of course you are coming too, Ivory." Kotetsu reassured him, "But Flower here can't walk on her own like we can, so I have to carry her."

Ivory nuzzled his elbow, crooning contently. Pao Lin's clone blinked, tears rolling down her cheek as the group slowly made their way out. Yet despite her fear, she ended up curled against Kotetsu's chest, clinging to his armor.

Kotetsu's wounds had mostly healed, only the major injuries remaining which did cause him pain and fatigue, still. He had to stop, leaning against the wall to catch his breath and ease the weight off his badly injured leg. Part of him wondered if it was getting badly infected and he was in danger of losing it after he'd been bitten.

Ivory gave him a worried glance, snuggled against his hip for reassurance. He whined, tapping his hook agitatedly against the ground in emphasis of his concern. Then stopped as a voice chuckled to them from somewhere overhead.

"My, my, this is interesting. Never expected you to get this far."

Kotetsu frowned, "I'm done with your games."

"Not quite yet, little Tiger" Malvolio's voice purred at him, the gentle coos of Ryan the second echoing in the background. "You still have one more to go. One last challenge waiting in the coliseum."

"No." Kotetsu said firmly, "I have stopped your bombs. I have no reason to stay and be your punching bag. There is no reason for you to risk your fellow clones you claim to care about above any other human. Look around you, Not-Bunny, they are all young children in bodies forced into being adults. They are all hurting and suffering emotionally for lack of affection. And here you are forcing them to engage in combat. I'm tired of hurting people for your twisted entertainment!"

"You really haven't learned anything, have you?" the voice commented dryly. "We are the ones scorned and forgotten. We were the ones used as toys. We were the ones who never grew up. We are what you see, Tiger. We are what you have discovered. I myself included. Machine or man... we are neither. But yes, children we are. And as an adult... you could never fathom what we have suffered. What we have seen. We've only shown you a glimpse, the world a glimpse, of our damnation. Everything you experienced... it is all our memories come to life. Does that make sense to you? I suppose not. You are human, a creature born of the womb. We are children, born of nothing but cells in tanks, no parentage to our names. All we have is our pain as a guardian. That is what we are, Mr. Tiger."

"And yet you sacrifice your peers, those who can understand you." He looked down at the clone he'd ended up naming 'Flower'. "Just look at her. Look at the pain she is in. This could have been avoided!"

"Her pain? Oh please - you caused her the pain. You broke her bones, twisted her limbs. In the end, no matter who sent her out, who let her loose, you were the one to strike her down. Like a poor father does to his daughter."

A shadow fell across Kotetsu's face as he turned it downwards, "You just don't understand." He continued to walk, intent upon getting Flower the help she needed.

"What don't I understand, Mr. Tiger?"

"That you are hurting them more than I could. You claim I broke the rules of your game when I showed them kindness and they responded positively. Everyone needs affection; a kind smile and a helpful hand goes a long way. I fought out of self defense, not in wanting to cause pain. Yet they forgive me. These children you keep locked in that maze below our feet—hidden within the darkness, and left to their own lonely distrust—such treatment is just as abusive as the scientists that crated you and used you as lab rats!"

Kotetsu took a deep breath, "You are the oldest. You were created when Bunny was only a small boy. You have had the time to mentally develop where the rest have not. You only lack love and nourishment. The only world you know is one of hate and pain; of which you reflect onto your family."

"Correction, Tiger. I was created, but never awakened, until shortly before my original appeared on stage" Malvolio snorted. "Regardless... it doesn't matter. The final match awaits. If you think the city is still safe, you are sorely mistaken. I have more than one method of getting my message past."

Kotetsu narrowed his eyes.

"He is waiting for you. Go on."

Malvolio's voice faded out to the whimpers and whines of the two pups accompanying Kotetsu on his way. Ivory clung to his arm while Flower nibbled timidly at the man's armor, her claws kneading into his chest plate for comfort.

Kotetsu looked down at them, doubting he could survive one more fight. His powers had healed him a fair amount, but as much as he pretended he was unaffected by what was happening, he knew it was breaking him. He was having a hard time keeping things straight in his mind, and he could feel the dark helplessness he struggled with for years pulling at his soul in ways he hadn't felt since his second marriage…or had he just imagined that marriage? He honestly was having doubts that it was real—the life he remembered and was desperate to return to. What if he'd made it all up to help cope with his life here?

"Such pointless torture for both sides…" he sighed, setting Flower down, "Ivory, please stay with Flower. I'll be back—I hope…"

He turned, heading back to face his fate.

Ivory whined as his mother took off, leaving him and the injured girl behind. Watching him retreat into the shadows, he sunk down next to Flower, sniffling slightly.

* * *

To be continued…


	14. Chapter 14

Taking a deep breath, Kotetsu stepped out into the arena one last time, jumping when the door slammed behind him, trapping him. He closed his eyes, trying to calm himself.

The darkening sky of evening hung low over his head, a threatening black abyss of space looming like a hand ready to smother him. The arena itself was cast into a shadow, the eerie arms of columns embracing Kotetsu with a chilling mother's hold. Unsafe and cold, fingers of dust tickling his throat and pressing rock encrusted nails into his skin. The wind kisses his wounds with a small bite, guiding those dirtied hands of dust down to caress the festering cuts.

A dark snigger sifted past the wind, brushing over Kotetsu's ears with toxic lips.

"So the kitty cat has come out to play... how cute~"

"I have come to end this. If I win you stop threatening the city and you let me go back to my family."

"And if you lose?" the voice purred, slithering around the shadows of the arena.

Kotetsu squeezed his eyes shut; pained by the words he spoke. "Then I will do anything you desire in exchange for the city and all who are in it to be spared."

"Perfect. Then we have an accord."

The voice drew closer, hissing softly, until the hot stench of metal and oil was right under his nose. Puffing gently against the shell of his ear, whispering softly.

"I look forward to our exchange, my original."

Back in Saito's lab, Kaede couldn't help but smack the screen she was watching the broadcast upon, "No, Dad can't you see it's a trap? You had won! Just get out of there—Dad!" she cried out as if he could magically hear her. The heroes were all busy, but she was stuck watching every detail of her father's torture.

From behind her father on the screen, the face of the albino H-01 came into view, his tiger grin malicious and armored hands quickly finding Kotetsu's throat, grabbing it like a chicken and squeezing it tight.

"Already I have an upper hand. What a fool you are, Kaburagi. No wonder you haven't gotten any arrests in the past few years - your sense of surroundings is atrocious."

Kotetsu gagged, his hands flying up to attempt to loosen the grip cutting off his air supply and silencing any words he may have spoken.

H-01 chuckled in his ear, cruelly tightening his hold on the man's air pipe.

Kotetsu's tongue slipped past his lips as he struggled to gasp for air, drool running down his chin as his hands grew desperate, scratching and clawing at the hand that held him.

His clone hummed a slightly eerie tune under his breath, waiting until Kotetsu's struggles weakened before finally releasing him, bringing his fist hard against his gut and throwing him aside. The action causing the faceplate on Kotetsu's helmet to snap shut.

Kotetsu collapsed like a sack of potatoes, loudly gasping and coughing as air rushed back into his lungs, giving him oxygen high.

He was being toyed with, he realized as his clone allowed him time to catch his breath and push himself to his feet. H-01 didn't even see him as enough of a threat to finish him off right away.

"Don't get cocky!" Kotetsu cried out, posing, ready for the next attack. His leg was throbbing and he didn't want to irritate it more than he had to.

"I don't have a cock to speak of." H-01 told him, his expression dry like some rude mouthed teenager.

Kotetsu nearly smacked his forehead, "You are even denser than I am… It's a figure of speech."

"I still lack a penis" the clone pointed out.

"Why would that make a difference to me?" Kotetsu asked.

"If I lack a penis, and I was modeled after you..."

The clone's grin couldn't be more infuriating.

"Obviously I have one. I'm a father."

"Must not be one of size, because they would have given me one otherwise~"

Kotetsu's face turned red, "My wife never complained! You are probably just all android down there from when they combined you with the parts of the original H-01!"

"Nope, in my original design they decided the penis was too... how do I put it? Oh yes. 'Flimsy and shriveled like his original's'. Also something about it being too small, too dumb."

Kotetsu smirked, "We both know that's a lie. Thanks to your leader nearly every clone here has seen it. Most likely there was a problem with the cloning process when they made you."

"Yes we all saw it. Wasn't impressive at all. Malvolio was even embarrassed by it." H-01 began to circle him slowly.

"Who's Mav—oh, right, you mean Not-Bunny." Kotetsu said, watching him closely.

"Oh my god—can they please stop talking about what's in my dad's pants?!" Kaede cried out, covering her ears.

H-01 continued to circle Kotetsu as he spoke. "So... you became a Hero because of Mr. Legend. Interesting you modeled yourself after an alcoholic who beat his wife?"

"What? I think you are confused. Mr. Legend was a great hero!"

"Oh? Did you never hear about that?" H-01 looked generally surprised. "I would have figured... since you know so much about him. How he died."

Kotetsu frowned, "No official report was ever released. But his death doesn't change the fact he was one of the best heroes and that he was the one to tell me my power was meant to save people when I was struggling to gain control of it! He'd never beat his wife—or anyone!"

H-01 only shook his head.

"You truly are as blind as other human to the fault of others. Malvolio was right to not trust you. Your judgment - it is blind. You seek only what you believe in. You do not see out the truth. That is what a Hero should do. But Heroes are only human - mindless, cold creatures capable only of their own desires, wishes and thoughts." They strive to obtain only what they wish for - even if it means sacrificing what is truly important, and bringing down others in their path."

He tilted his head, red eyes glowing in the growing darkness.

"I'd reckon you yourself never properly looked into the cause of his death... or what triggered it. It was sudden thing - does that not strike you as suspicious?"

"It…was a medical complication."

H-01 chuckled. "Oh no. It most certainly was not. Far from it."

"And how would you know? What makes you so sure you would know the truth about a masked hero who's identity had been kept completely secret? One far before your time at that!"

"Good question. You'd have to ask our creators. But they're all dead, so your guess is as good as mine." H-01 shrugged. "However... I will say they did a very fine job of nabbing that little 'classified' information... through the use of a drone. Hereby meaning, we have access to video recording of Mr. Legend very disturbing death."

He grinned at Kotetsu.

"Would you like to see it?"

Kotetsu didn't speak. There was no way a great hero like Mr. Legond could have been anything but a good guy!

"I'll take your silence as a yes." H-01 sniggered, and right before Kotetsu's eyes, in the safe confines of his helmet (which suspiciously seemed to lock itself in place to his suit), a screen was brought up and video began rolling in a slow fashion, the voices humming softly in Kotetsu's ears.

No—this was wrong! It had to be!.

Kotetsu watched helplessly as the scene played. His Hero, Mr. Legond arriving home, drinking heavily—and then hitting his wife Over and over he struck her in anger, only one real piece of information striking Kotetsu's heart from his words; his powers were on a decline. Just like Kotetsu's had—just like Barnaby's had started to… and he was using that reality to harm his family.

Kotetsu watched as a little boy cried out for it to stop, for his father to stop hurting his mother. And then it happened. Flames of unnatural coloring sprang out from the boy, alighting the hero on fire.

Kotetsu tried to clamp his hands over his ears at the screams, falling to his knees as  his whole reason for wanting to be a hero and helping people in the beginning crumbled away and on some level, he realized that Mr. Legond's son was Lunatic. Suddenly, the anti-hero's sense of so-called 'justice' made sense. It was personal, imbedded in him as a child.

Kotetsu's hero—had been Lunatic's first villain.

H-01's voice was of no help, grating against Kotetsu's ear.

"It burns, doesn't it? The truth of it all... it's hard to bare. But you see now - you see what the government knew, what they covered up. They wanted no one to know. They lied to you. Adults lied to you, a child at the time. I looked into your past - did you know, Mr. Tiger, that his death was only a few days after he met you? That man, smiling at you... was an alcoholic drunk who ruined his family, and cared nothing for it. His 'Heroism' came first - and you, who modeled yourself after him. In his footsteps... you have followed that same path of selfishness. And now, people have to suffer at your hand. Your mother, who will eventually die of worry for her son throwing himself at the face of danger without a care about how she feels. Your brother, forced to reckon with the loss of his marriage by struggling to support your mother and daughter, your family that you risk into debt with every building you break. Your daughter, a sweet girl who only wishes for her father... you abandoned her without hesitation, for your own means. And her she is, having grown up most of her life without a father there for her. Poor thing... you can see that inside, it has screwed her up."

He leaned in, leering venomously at the Hero.

"And your husband, who does everything so selflessly for you...look what has become of him now? You came into his life, meddled... and now what reason he had to live on is tarnished. Hero, gone. Father, he tries but he is not. You forced him, Kotetsu T. Kaburagi, into a life not meant for him. How careless of you. Really you stand up to your name... Crusher of Justice."

Kotetsu could feel himself breaking.

What if Tomoe hadn't died? If she had lived...if Barnaby hadn't been his partner—would he have also become abusive? Was he made of the same cloth as Mr. Legend? Was he—only posing as a hero and just under the surface of his mask lay a villain?

And most importantly, had he only hurt his family?

Tears of anger and frustration stung his eyes and rolled down his cheeks hidden behind his mask.

H-01 stalked forward. Taking hold of Kotetsu's chin, he tilted his head up to face him. And whispered softly, "All this time, it could have been avoided. You could have been someone different. Even now, you tarnish the memory of your beloved wife by sleeping with another. And in return, your tarnish Barnaby, by wearing that ring on your finger. All this time, it was out of your selfishness. You have sinned greatly, Mr. Kotetsu. It is unfortunate, but the truth lies there. For every action, there is a path we must take. And when the path divides in two, we must choose. You could have been someone different, Mr. Kotetsu. You could have been better, but that's not in you now - and it's too late to change. And to think - had the city truly cared, don't you think they would have come to you now? Our location, it is easy to track. It's not hard for the government to send in a team to rescue you. We are, for the most part, unarmed against ambush, and we are not bullet proof. Don't you think they would have come to get you by now?"

Kotetsu started to visibly shake.

All he had done—his entire life…had any of it been worth it?

His whole life his family had been hard on him, his friends seemed to mock him. Tomoe had truly been the only one to ever make him feel like he truly belonged. Like he could be himself—and she had been taken from him. He had failed to save her. He hurt his daughter that way—Tomoe's daughter. And the rest…did they only stick around pretending because they felt they were required to do so? Were they all better off without him? Did it make even a difference if he did disappear? Were they all happy he was gone?

H-01 leaned in closer.

"You understand now, why you were brought here? I'll give you a little secret - how I was created, the DNA they sampled... you came here willingly to give it to them. And from that they created me. In your selfishness, you repressed the memory... or he did. That man that came with you. Maverick I think it was. My creators were... not very straightforward with the name thing. But he, Maverick... you became the Hero you did because he wanted you to be so. You memories, your true selfish self... he took that away so you could forget. You were at his side. You, after Legend's death, became his secondary pawn. His Legend 2.0. And because you believe only in your own self and thoughts, you became exactly what he asked of you. And never once has regret resurface, if it ever did. If you don't believe me, I have more videos to show you. We recorded everything they did there, in Sternbild - or rather, my creators did. There is nothing we do not know."

"No…no I never even knew that man until Bunny…" Kotetsu choked out, his eyes wide.

"Oh, but you have." H-01 cooed, stroking his mask's cheek sympathetically. "Look-"

An old photograph flashed up in front of Kotetsu's eyes, the man younger and most likely a few years into his Hero work. There he stood at a podium, shaking hands with the old Hero TV owner and runner, Albert Maverick.

"I can guarantee its not photoshopped, and I can even show you the source. Our drones took it years ago, but the one used still can be booted up to prove it."

Kotetsu's eyes widened. He'd only been a puppet—all this time. He hadn't even known… More images flashed before his eyes within his helmet. Images of him with Maverick. Images of Maverick altering his memory—Even ones of Kotetsu and Barnaby together before they even met—according to the memories they shared.

The hero tried to yank off his helmet, finding it locked in place, and he fell onto his back in attempt to yank himself free of the images. " _No!_ "

"You cannot run from your past or the truth." H-01 chided him. "Look at you - instead of accepting it, you try to run. Pathetic. You call yourself a Hero, and yet here you are. No more selfish than any other man, refusing to see what wrong he has done."

He crouched down next to Kotetsu, watching him with interest.

"I cannot help but pity you - you have done so much and ruined so many... did you know you murdered three people on your first mission? They never told you that did they?"

"Stop! Stop it! I'm not a killer!"

"You did - remember that fire, where you lifted a rock out of the way and tossed it to get to the upper floor? Well... where you tossed it... a father was trying to help his mother and infant son out of their apartment. And you threw it, carelessly right on top of them. I have the proof right here-"

More pictures of the accident popped up, the charred bodies squashed under a very familiar rock.

Kotetsu honestly hadn't remembered that mission, but it all came flooding back to him, making him queasy. He clutched his stomach, "Please—no more!" he gasped, feeling on the verge of throwing up within his helmet.

"But it's your past you must remember." H-01 reminded him. "And that time Sternbild flooded - do you remember that dam you put up to stop the water from coming up to your home? Well... in the process... you drowned over 100 people trying to escape. Those ruined street - they are the graves of infants and children whose last moments were caused by a selfish man worried about his own home, about only the people he favored."

More images, more pain, more memories.

No…he'd built that damn under orders to save many, the submerged area had been evacuated—right?

He was having his doubts. His mind had been altered so many times…

H-01's face was almost touching his.

"Would you like to repent for your sins? There is no righting the wrong you have done. The good you did - it was a lie told to you. Nothing you have done in life has been worth it to anyone. Not your poor wife, your suffering daughter, your ailing mother, your tired brother, your losing husband... even the city. No one wants it. No one wants you."

He breathed against the mask, clouding it the same way Kotetsu's mind was clouding over.

"So... what will you do, Mr. Hero?"

Kotetsu was physically unable to answer; his mind in such a panic in search for something that was real, something that was good—something…that would confirm he was who he thought he was, but unable to do so. He slumped his shoulders and hung his head, eyes closing in defeat.

"Do you wish to repent? Do you give in to your sins?" H-01 asked again.

Kotetsu gave the slightest nod. It was all he could do.

"Very good, little Tiger” H-01 purred, grabbing the man by the throat and lifting him up off the ground. “It’s funny. In armor we look the same. But who is the lie and who is the truth here?”

Kotetsu gagged and suddenly his helmet cracked and fell away to reveal his face. His messy hair falling over the face of a broken man. He touched H-01's hands about his neck but lacked the strength and will to try and break free. Black spots dotted his vision and his hearing faded into a ringing sound, drowning out the world around him.

“So pathetic... so useless. And to think, your poor daughter has heard everything we’ve said. What a fool of a father she’s had-”

"Kaede…" Kotetsu let out the last of his breath as the black dot won out and he faded into darkness.

 _Daddy's sorry_ …

H-01 let him go right before his last breath would have suffocated him, smirking down at the fallen hero and planting a foot on his body.

Clapping sounded, Malvolio stepping out of the doors and into the arena. H-01 glanced at him, his expression reverted back to boredom.

“It is done.” he said, voice metallic and rough.

Malvolio smiled down at the Hero.

“I trust you left him alive? That is what I told you to do. H-01, I swear to God-”

“He is living, do not fret to me,” the android growled, stepping off his prize and turning to walk away.

“Hold up!” Malvolio held up his hand. “I have one more job for you.”

He glanced up at the screen.

“Citizens of Sternbild, you have seen the truth. Or, well... a tale. It’s quite amazing the power the human psyche has. Look at your hero, how easily he fell. This, my friends - if he had his belief, he would not have been blinded by weakness. But I will say - some were truth, some were lies. That is up to you to believe. But now, it's over. He lost.”

He shook his head.

“And I, as the victor, should take my prize. However ... I am feeling quite generous today. So I will offer you a deal.”

He lifted the unconscious Kotetsu’s head up by the hair.

“You’ve seen it all, and now I give you a choice. If you so desire, you may come forth and pick up this piece of garbage you call a Hero. He is yours to claim, if you want him. BUT-”

He grinned.

“If you do, the one who comes forth must face myself in battle. I’ve grown quite agitated. And now I want in. I want to play. If you want your toy back, you have to play with me. Until then this is my toy to continue doing with as I please.”

Truly, it was no different than a child demanding things.

Kaede was pounding on the screen in Saito's lab, crying and screaming out for her father. Tears rolling down her face in steady streams.

"It's not true! None off it's true! Dad! DAD!" the glass was beginning to crack and shatter, shards cutting into her hands as she continued to beat the now broken and imageless screen.

"Kaede!" Karina gasped as she stepped into the lab, catching the girl going nuts.

"Dad!" Kaede struggled against Karina's hold, in a panic. She had never—ever seen her dad that bad before. She'd seen him in his depressions before, but he was just so—broken. It was so far beyond what he'd dealt with before.

"Kaede, please! You need to calm down!" Karina gasped, struggling herself to keep the girl in check. "Please - Kaede, look at me."

She turned the girl around, bending down to eye level.

"I know it sounds difficult, but your Dad needs you to be strong for him. He needs our help - that much is true. And we are going to go get him. We'll bring him home to you."

"No! I'm not a kid anymore! You sound like Barnaby. Stop treating me like I'm still only ten! I'm fifteen and my dad needs me! You don't know him like I do and he isn't just feeling depressed this time! He needs me more than ever! More than you, more than the other heroes, more than even Barnaby! I'm his daughter!"

"Kaede, I know he does - would you please listen to me?" Karina begged. "I know you're scared and I know you want to go out to help your father, but even if you are a NEXT, you wouldn't stand a chance. I wouldn't stand a chance, and I have been a full-fledged Hero for years. We can't do this alone - those clones are too powerful. We need a plan, we need... we need something..."

There was a sudden burst of ice trapping Karina to the floor, flurries of snow drifting in the air around the two girls as Kaede held her angry expression, "I can copy their powers. They won't be expecting that. I have an advantage. They know all your powers, but not mine."

Karina just gasped at her, her mouth partially opened by no words coming out.

The emotional daughter turned away, but paused to look back at Karina, the determined look in her eye identical to the one her father often had. "The most important thing a hero does is protect people. That includes other heroes, and right now, the person in need of saving and protection is my dad." Her tone also matched her father's when he got serious about something.

"You weren't much older than me when you became Blue Rose. If you can be a young hero, then so can I. I'm going to bring my dad home—and then…I'm going to give him all those hugs I should have before. I'll make sure he'll be alright."

Karina let out a gasp, something in her chest shuddering. She blinked, watching Kaede walk away, her heart pounding and heat rising to her cheek. And then flushed, shaking her head, struggling to free herself from her own element with a growl.

Now... was not a time to think on something so strange to her.

"I'm coming to save you, Dad. Even if you ground me for it later—that is the price I'll pay to save you and bring you home." Kaede muttered to herself, clenching her icy cold fists as she headed deeper into Saito's labs.

 

* * *

On the other side of the city, sitting upon a gargoyle on the ledge of a skyscraper, Barnaby stared down at his hands with a troubled expression. He knew he shouldn't have felt angered at Kotetsu's mistake, and yet the hurt still sunk in and bit on his nerves. But he knew Nathan was right - they had no idea, could not even fathom how much Kotetsu had gone through. And so, with that resolve, he'd set about to working out a plan on how to bring his husband home. The team working on "locating" the clone was of no help - frankly, Barnaby wasn't even too sure they were doing anything at all. They seemed more inclined to biding their time, waiting it out like a bad storm.

Swearing, another idea down the drain, Barnaby clenched his fists in frustration, racking his brain furiously for anything to help him.

"Hey Junior." Ryan suddenly plopped down beside Barnaby, resting his arm around the other blond's shoulders, "Did ya catch the end of that last broadcast? Quite a doozy, that was."

Barnaby glared up at him, visor up to reveal the disdain on his face. "What are you talking about?"

He'd seen up to the fight with Pao-Lin's clone, but he'd assumed that was the last of the fights. Neither his clone, or Rose's or even the android, seemed interested in fighting his husband. It wouldn't have mattered anyway - this side of the city lost communications not long after that last fight - or what Barnaby had mistakenly assumed was the last fight.

"I'll take that as a no, then." Ryan sighed and pulled out his phone, small beeping sounds sounding as he pressed buttons. "I have some bad news, good news, good news, and bad news again…crap, I just sounded like that Sky High guy, didn't I? Lame." He shook his head and looked back up at Barnaby.

"First off, that raccoon you married lost his last fight against—well, I guess the best way to put it is himself. Though I wouldn't call it much of a fight. He was hardly touched before he was choked until unconscious. Mostly the white raccoon just talked and your raccoon fell pretty hard to it and lost his bet. He had wagered that if he won, he gets to come home and the clones no longer threaten the city…if he lost they would get whatever they wanted from him in exchange for the city's safety. So yeah, he's kinda up shit creek without a paddle. But that's the bad news."

Ryan grinned and showed his phone to Barnaby, "The good news is that first the bombs seem to be all fake, and the second is that the other you gave out their location! We know exactly where they are. The other bad news is they still want to play their game with anyone who shows up to save your raccoon."

"What?!"

Barnaby snatched the phone away, staring at it with a mix of emotions. The good news, they had the location to save Kotetsu! The bad news... he didn't like what he was hearing.

"What... exactly happened during that last fight?" he breathed, his heart pounding in fear for his poor husband.

"Push the play button." Ryan shrugged, "I had my phone record it all."

Barnaby shivered, his thumb hovering fearfully over the button before tapping down, watching as the recording started over from the beginning.

The deal, the recordings and pictures, the taunting all played for Barnaby, followed by Kotetsu's easy defeat and Barnaby's clone's speech before it ended.

Ryan watched Barnaby's face the entire time and took his phone back from trembling hands when it was finished. "So what's the plan, partner?"

Barnaby couldn't answer him, the former King of Heroes shaking with rage at the sight of his husband's torture. Bastards... they would pay for what they did to his poor husband. Kotetsu... Barnaby's heart ached for him. Half of the stuff they were showing the man was completely falsified - and yet Kotetsu licked it all up like a cat to milk. That sense of self-loathing... it worried Barnaby more than anything.

At this point... he feared they were only catching a glimpse at what damage had been done to Kotetsu.

* * *

To be continued…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, To be continued, not "the end". As mentioned before, we are writing two ending options for this fic and the next chapter is the point where the two endings fork into their own stories. Each alternate ending is multiple chapters so for ease of finding and reading the two endings, we are posting each ending as it's own separate fanfic here on AO3. You will be able to find them easily as we are including it in a "series" grouping. We are posting one ending at a time so the first ending chapter 15 will be posted sometime next week. Please keep your eye out or subscribe to the series (Link below). 
> 
> Anyway, thank you for reading this far with us, we hope you have enjoyed it so far, and we hope to see you in one or both of the endings!
> 
> http://archiveofourown.org/series/329461


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